Decisions Part 2 A boy grows up to be a Sister
by Jules Cesar
Summary: The bounty hunter is dead. Andriel and Chitrah need to find a world were they can raise their son. Where the Sith won't find them. The Selketh have hired a respected freighter captain to help them. A place were their son can also be trained to use the force. Recommended reading Decisions Part 1 first. Rated Mature. The History of Dathomir, chapters 5 thru 8, can be read on its own.
1. Chapter 1

©2016

Krillgan shook his mother and father, asking them, why the people were acting funny? Andriel who was holding Krillgan on her hip, with one hand, and had her other hand around Chitrah's waist. Was crying on her husband's shoulder, because they were alive, and safe. Chitrah who was hugging his son and wife, for the same reason, had his eyes closed.

Both suddenly open their eyes and looked around at their son's prompting. They saw the Selkath, some on their knees, the rest standing, all bowed towards them. Even the ones who were still dripping water, like Chitrah and Krillgan. Having just helped them out of the water. Then Andriel remembered that Krillgan had been hit when the bounty hunter fired the flechette rocket in their direction. Which is why he ended up in the sea to begin with. She asked, him where he was hurt? Krillgan told her that he was not hurt anymore. Very little things had come, pulled by the great Mother's swimming. They had come into him through his cuts, and healed him. Andriel asked him to show her where he had been injured. Krillgan pointed to four places on his body. Andriel found a hole in his clothes at each place he indicated, but there was no wound underneath. Not even a scar. Then they noticed an older Selkath coming towards them. He would take a few steps, then bow, then take a few more steps then bow again. Eventually he made his way up to them. He told them he was an elder of the Selkath, and asked them to come with him.

Andriel asked him why all the people were bowing towards them. He told her that they were not bowing to them. They were bowing towards her son. No-one has been able to call the Progenitor, whom they call the Great Mother, in the past Three Hundred years, and their son just called her. The three of them followed the elder. The elder had touched a couple of dry Selkath, pointing to their luggage. They immediately went and grabbed their luggage, and followed behind. They came to what looked like a hole in a pile of rubble. The elder explained that this is his home. They followed him inside expecting a dusty cave. What they found was a large, clean, comfortable living space. The elder told them that they were not ready to let the outside world know, that they were better off than they looked. In case the Sith Empire decided, to come back, and finish what they started. It also gives them the excuse not to have any dealings with the Sith Empire. The elder let them use the bedroom, to change out of their wet clothes, into something dry. Andriel was almost as wet as Chitrah and Krillgan from hugging them and holding them. This also gave Andriel and Chitrah an opportunity to examine Krillgan's body more closely. After changing, they came back out to the main room, and sat down on the comfortably carpeted floor.

The elder asked them what brings them to Manaan. Chitrah let Andriel tell him their story. While she was sharing, the elder's wife brought them platters, with pieces of various types of fresh fish, along with pieces of different types of seaweed. They were also handed small bowls of fish eggs, with little spoons in them. Krillgan's bowl was about a third the size of his parents' bowls, but the fish eggs were a different colour.

When Chitrah tried to taste a sample of Krillgan's bowl of fish eggs, the elder immediately interrupted Andriel's story, to tell Chitrah that he was forbidden to touch Krillgan's fish eggs. They were only for the one who called the Great Mother. Chitrah told the elder he understood, and apologised. The elder let Andriel know that she could continue. Andriel tried not to show that she was also disappointed. Since she wanted to try Krillgan's bowl of fish eggs as well. At least the elder let her eat while she talked, she was actually quite hungry.

She had never eaten raw fish before, but it tasted quite good, especially wrapped in seaweed. The meal was finished, and put away, and pots of seaweed tea were brought out for them to sip on and enjoy, before Andriel had finished telling him their story.

The elder did not believe that the small micro-organisms had entered Krillgan's body. He told them that they had no affinity for the blood of humanoid species. Andriel told him that Krillgan's blood was special. While his father has the normal red blood associated with most humanoid species, she has the black Devaronian blood. Krillgan has both. The elder did not know about Devaronian blood. If this was true, than there would be more, and different nutrients in Krillgan's blood, then is normally found in regular blood. This would explain why the micro-organisms had entered his blood. He told the family that it was very important, for them not to tell anyone about the micro-organisms. They did not want the outside world to know what the source of Kolto is. They have told outsiders different stories, including that it came from the Progenitor herself, to keep them from trying to take the source of Kolto to other worlds, to see if they could produce it elsewhere.

Andriel and Chitrah said they understood. But did that mean they had to stay on Manaan, because Krillgan had the Kolto producing microbials inside of him. The elder told them that it was too dangerous for them to stay on Manaan. The Sith still come by from time to time, to buy Kolto, and they would eventually find him. He knows a very trustworthy captain that should be visiting them, any day now. He is sure this captain knows of a world that they could go to. To raise their son in peace, and keep him safe from the Sith. In the meantime he would appreciate it, if they would consider his home as their home. He also asked them if they could keep Krillgan inside, because if he goes outside, the Selkath will stop what they are doing, and bow to him, out of reverence. It would be hard for them to get anything done. Andriel and Chitrah asked Krillgan if he could stay inside the home, and play with his blocks. Krillgan said it would be okay, but he would still like to go outside from time to time, to go for a walk with them. The elder told them that there were two times in the day that it would be okay for them to take Krillgan outside. During the heat of the afternoon, the Selkath like to nap inside, unless they are in the water, because the sun can dry out their skin. The second time is when they came home for their evening meal. The family agreed that they could go for a walk at these times. Krillgan had laid down with his head on his mother's lap. The elder realised that they were all fatigued from the day's events. He asked them to take his bedroom as theirs. At first they resisted, but when the wife added her voice to her husbands, they caved in. Not wanting to offend their gracious hosts.

The bed was a very large mattress resting directly on the floor. There was enough room on the bed for the three of them. After changing into their sleepwear, they only covered themselves with a very light blanket, as it was still quite warm in the home, from the residual heat of the day.

The next morning, Chitrah woke up first, as he normally does. He quickly dressed, and went out into the common room. The elder and his wife were already up. The elder offered to take them to a place where they could bathe in the morning.

So that the elder would not have to make two trips, Chitrah decided to wake Andriel up. He went back into the bedroom, and knelt beside the side of the bed that Andriel was sleeping on. He bent over and lightly kissed Andriel on the lips. A smile came on Andriel's face, as she woke up, and kissed Chitrah back. Chitrah saw that she was willing for more, but instead, told her the reason he woke her up. Andriel was a little let down, but understood Chitrah's reason for waking her up gently. Krillgan was still asleep in the middle of the bed. She dressed and followed Chitrah into the main room. The elder led them outside, where they followed a path. They were approaching the edge of the raft, when they came to an open area, and a set of stairs leading down to the water. The elder handed them a sea sponge, that they could use to wash their bodies, and told them that he and his wife had already bathed that morning.

They found that there was a large landing at the bottom of the stairs, were the Selkath had left their clothing, before jumping into the water in the swimming area. Andriel and Chitrah did not feel comfortable, stripping down naked in front of the Selkath that were already in the water. So they jumped in fully clothed. They did not think anyone would mind, since the swimming area was open to the sea. When adult Selkath, that came down to bathe after them, saw that their guests had gone into the water fully clothed, they did the same, so that they would feel more comfortable.

Chitrah was enjoying himself, diving into the water, then standing up on the sand. As the water only came up to his chest, on the sandbar in the middle of the bathing area. He was surprised he could see underwater as well as he could see in the air. One time he came out of the water laughing. Andriel wanted to know why. He told her that he is a Chagrian that did not know how to swim.

Andriel could see that he felt at home in the water. She thought of maybe undressing in the water, to make it easier to use the sponge that the elder gave them. Chitrah told her that she looked just as beautiful under the water as she did above, which made her blush, since the water came up to just above her mountains. She felt a little frisky, after being awaken with a kiss, and started unbuttoning her blouse anyway. Chitrah warned her that the Selkath could see underwater as well as he could. She did it anyway, just to tease him. He submerged himself to watch the show. She stopped when she noticed that all the Selkath were underwater as well. This made her face go really dark.

Chitrah came out of the water laughing again, because he saw her face darken. Then he went up to her, and gave her a kiss, and told her that he loves her. The Selkath assumed that this was some sort of sex ritual between the two alien adults, and proceeded to ignore them. Andriel reached into her blouse with the sponge, to wash herself down, before doing her blouse back up. She then handed the sponge to Chitrah, so that he could reach up her blouse, and wash her back. After they finished helping each other wash, they climbed back up, onto the landing, and agreed that they should bring Krillgan here, when the Selkath were taking their afternoon nap.

They were still dripping water when they approached the elder's home. So they found a small alcove in the rubble nearby. If one of them stood at the entrance to the alcove, they would block the sight of anyone looking in. This way they could take turns undressing, and wring out their clothes. They did not want to leave a trail of water on the elder's nicely carpeted floor.

Andriel was not blind to the fact that Chitrah was getting turned on, seeing her naked. But they both held back. This was not the place where they wanted to make love.

When they entered the elder's home, they were careful not to track any of the mud they made when wringing out their clothes, in with them. They quickly went into the bedroom to change, then they woke Krillgan up for breakfast. Breakfast was similar to what they had for dinner, except, no fish eggs.

After breakfast, Krillgan played Hutt Wars with his father, on his father's computer.

Andriel asked for directions from the elder's wife, to go to the local market. She wanted to buy some fabric, to hand sew them all, loose fitting tunics, to wear when they went to the swimming area. Andriel had no concept of swim wear, or bathing suits. She felt that loose fitting tunics would give them the ability to bathe in them without difficulty, yet still gave them the freedom to move around in the water. She also thought that they would not be as clingy as their regular clothes, revealing too much when they came out of the water. She found the fabric she was looking for, and it had a nice pastel print. At least they would look colourful when they were going to and from the water. When she returned, she decided to sew Krillgan's tunic first. It would be good practice for when it came time to sew them, for her and Chitrah, and it would be easier for her to hide any mistakes. She did not have to interrupt her two boys, as they played together. She just laid the fabric on their backs, while they played, to make sure the tunics would be the right size.

Lunch was the same thing as breakfast and dinner. It did not take long for Andriel and Chitrah to figure out that the variations in the Selkath diet, was the number of different fish they ate, and the wide selection of seaweeds they were able to consume. They did not cook anything for their meals. The only fire they ever saw was in the fish oil lamps that they used to light their homes, and boil water for tea. If they did not leave very soon, they would start craving ship rations. Which up until now, they both thought was impossible.

After lunch, they brought Krillgan's blocks into the common room. Chitrah continued to play with him, while Andriel continued with her sewing.

When the elder came home for his nap, Andriel had all three tunics ready. Chitrah and Krilgan both decided that they did not need to wear anything under their tunics. Andriel decided to play it safe, and still wore her panties. Since the swimming area was open to the sea, she did not want any small creatures swimming where she did not want them to.

When they jumped into the water, an unexpected thing happened. The tunics ballooned out with trapped air. The tunics almost slipped off. They all had fun working the trapped air out, and getting the tunics completely wet. Chitrah had braced his one leg above the knee of his other leg so that Krillgan had a place where he could sit or stand. Otherwise he would have to bob up and down off the sandbar, so that he could get his head out of the water to breath.

Andriel removed Krillgan's tunic completely, so that she could give him a good scrub with the sponge, all over his body. Krillgan was the only one of the three that knew they were not alone. There were a number of Selkath children along the edge of the swimming area, he assumed that they wanted to see him, the one who called the Great Mother. There were also two adults, guarding the entrance from the sea. He could also sense the firaxan sharks swimming back and forth in the sea, just outside the swimming area. None of this bothered him, because he felt that they were safe.

After his scrubbing, Andriel helped him put his tunic back on. Then they took turns tossing him back and forth between them. They never threw him right to the other person. They always threw him just short, so that he would end up splashing the other adult, when he hit the water. Krillgan tried his hardest to make a big splash each time. There was a lot of healthy laughter coming from all of them. As Andriel and Chitrah were getting tired from throwing Krillgan, they started throwing him shorter and shorter distances, forcing him to try and paddle with his arms and feet, to make up the distance. They were all pretty tired by the time they finished their play time.

Chitrah took Krillgan in his arms to carry him back, since he was so tired.

Because it was the heat of the day, they were not dripping water by the time they arrived back at the elder's home. They tippy-toed through the home into the bedroom, not to wake the elder and his wife. The elder's wife had left them three wet towels on a tray in the bedroom, so that they could wipe the salt water off of their bodies. They wiped Krillgan down first, and put some fresh clothes on him so that they could lay him down for a nap. He fell asleep right away. Andriel and Chitrah helped wipe each other down. They were both quite tired, so they had one long kiss, as a promise, that they would have some alone time later that day. They also fell asleep quickly, after crawling onto the bed on either side of Krillgan.

They awoke to the soft tapping sound on the bedroom door. The elder's wife told them that soon everyone would be heading home for their evening meal. They might want to get ready for the walk they wanted to take. Andriel and Chitrah both slept longer than they had planned on, but they did feel refreshed. They were wearing the clothes they intended to wear for the walk, only they were all wrinkled from having been slept in. They decided not to change, because no-one was expected to be outside when they went for their walk. When the elder thought it was safe, they stepped outside. They could tell from the sky that the sun was setting. So they walked quickly to the place the bounty hunter had trapped them, and found a place to sit, so that they could watch the last of the sunset. They forgot that they were near the cantina. They could smell the hint of cooked foods on the breeze, which made all their stomachs growl.

Andriel and Chitrah looked at each other. The look said not tonight, they had other plans. After the sun set below the horizon, they got up and walked to the spaceport area. Chitrah could still see quite well in the low light conditions, so Andriel relied on him to lead them through the rubble. Krillgan could see almost as well as his father, so he took the time to look around, as he held his mother's hand. Eventually they made it back to the elder's. They sent Krillgan inside, and told him that it was okay for him to start his dinner without them. They had someplace they needed to go, but would be back later.

Andriel and Chitrah headed back to the swimming area. It was now dark enough that Andriel had no clue where she was going. She could just tell that the sky was lighter than the darkness around them. It was only when Chitrah started going down the stairs that she knew where she was. She was able to make out the surface of the water where the swimming area joined the sea.

Chitrah felt that his low light sight was better than the Selkath. So they did not worry about being discovered. He did not know that the sharks that were swimming in the swimming area, had better lowlight vision than he did.

When Andriel and Chitrah reached the platform, they started kissing, then they started helping each other out of their clothing. Then they made love to each other. They both admitted that they waited too long for this moment, and let the fire of their passion for one another burn freely. After the fire had ran its course, they rested. Then Andriel got up and went to the edge of the platform. She wanted to jump into the water to wash herself off. Chitrah grabbed her arm and pulled her away from the edge. He told her that he had heard something in the water, and it wasn't a Selkath. Andriel asked him if it was okay if she just went to the edge and splashed some water on herself.

"Only if you want to lose an arm."

Just then, they both felt something heavy bump the platform. They both hurriedly grabbed their clothes. Trying to dress as they climbed the stairs.

When Krillgan entered the elder's home by himself, the elder and his wife both asked Krillgan where his parents are? He told the elders that he heard that they were both breathing a little heavy, and knew that they wanted to be alone. The elders smiled at how observant this little boy was. They asked him how their walk went. He told them how they went back to where the elder found them, so that they could watch the sun go down, and how all their tummies growled when they smelt the smells coming from the one home near there. The elder and his wife knew that Krillgan was talking about the Smuggler's Cantina. They also realised that they had made a big mistake as hosts. Their guests were not Selkath, and were probably not used to eating Selkath food. They were also too polite to say anything, which showed that they are good quality people. The elder left his wife to look after Krillgan, while he went out to talk with those who were more used to dealing with aliens. After Krillgan had eaten his fill, the elder's wife started cleaning up the dinner. She left one large platter, because she expected the young couple to be hungry, when they came back from their alone time, as their young son called it.

When Andriel and Chitrah returned, the elder's wife could smell sex on their bodies. She was sure Krillgan recognised the smell, but did not know its source. They devoured the platter in no time.

While they were eating, Andriel asked the elder's wife, if it was common for the Firaxan Sharks to come into the swimming area? Now she knew where the young couple had gone, she told them that the swimming area belonged as much to the sharks, as it does to the Selkath. Andriel then asked why the sharks tolerate the Selkath in the water, when they don't tolerate any other species. The elder's wife told them, that though the Firaxan Sharks easily forget that they are distant cousins, every creature in the galaxy knows not to attack a another creature that is better equipped to defend itself. Andriel pressed the elder's wife to give a fuller explanation. Because her husband was not present, and she had grown rather fond of this family, she did something that is frowned upon in Selkath society, she extended her poison tipped claws. She told them that the sharks have learnt to respect these. Then she retracted them again. Krillgan who was suddenly very interested in this conversation, asked his father, if he also had these claws? Chitrah replied with a mournful voice, "I am a Chagrian, with no horns, and can't swim. Have pity on me." This caused everyone to laugh. Andriel asked her how the claws, help them against the sharks? The wife explained about the poison in the claws. A simple scratch is enough to paralyze a shark. A shark that cannot swim, cannot breath, and will suffocate and die. Krillgan wanted to know, if it happened very often? The elder's wife told them, that on the rare occasion that a Selkath has had to use their claws against a shark. The Selkath will call other Selkath to it, and they will swim for the shark, so that it can keep breathing. When the shark regains its ability to swim, it returns to the other sharks, and transmits its warning to leave the Selkath alone.

This is far more effective than letting the shark die. Andriel and Chitrah were happy that Krillgan was learning some very valuable lessons about life. When the elder came home, his wife told him that Chitrah was a Chagrian. They had both met Chagrians in their lives. Krillgan added, "But he has no horns, and can't swim." Then he started giggling. This was a sure sign to Andriel that it was past his bedtime.

Andriel added, "But I love him just the way he is." Krillgan also affirmed that he loved his father just the way he is.

The elder asked Chitrah, how this was possible? Andriel told Krillgan that it was time for him to go to bed. Krillgan understood that his father was going to tell a story, and he had never heard it before. He pleaded with his mother that he be allowed to stay and listen to father's story. Andriel relented, on the condition that he only listen, and he rest his head on her lap. Krillgan readily agreed to these conditions.

Chitrah told them about the Rakatah transporting Chagrian slaves to Deysum III, to work in their mines. The elder mentioned that the Rakatah also transported many Selkath to other worlds during the first part of their occupation of Manaan, but they all died, because they need to go into the water at least once a day. So instead they forced them to build the first raft, to build a city for the Rakatah. The elder then apologised to Chitrah, for interrupting his story, and asked him to continue.

By this time Krillgan had fallen asleep, but Andriel did not move him, because she had promised him he could stay. After Chitrah finished, Andriel and Chitrah decided that they should retire as well. Chitrah picked up his son and carried him into the bedroom. When they were changing him, Krillgan in a groggy voice complained that he did not hear the story. Chitrah promised him that he would tell him in the morning, and he would be allowed to ask him questions as well. Krillgan kissed him on the cheek, and fell back asleep. Andriel told Chitrah that she was disappointed that she did not get a kiss. So he kissed her passionately on her lips. Andriel wanted more.

Since Krillgan was asleep, they thought it was safe for them to make love, before going to sleep, as long as they did not make any noise, and wake people up. The elder shared with his wife, what he had learnt at the cantina, and what preparations he had made for feeding them the following day.

The next morning Chitrah again woke his wife with a kiss. He already had his swimming tunic on. Andriel quickly slipped into hers, and followed him to the swimming area. She saw no evidence on the landing of what they did the night before. So either they were very careful, which she doubted, or some very nice person washed away the evidence, this morning. They eased themselves into the water, to try and keep the tunics from ballooning out. There was some ballooning, but they were quickly able to get rid of the trapped air. Chitrah found it easier, to but his arm down the back of Andriel's tunic to wash her back, rather than trying to come up underneath it. He just had to be careful not to choke his wife. Andriel returned the favour for him (By not choking him).

At breakfast they were surprised to find a stack of flatbread, along with the pieces of fresh fish, and seaweed. Andriel decided to take two pieces of flatbread, and pile pieces of fish and seaweed between them. Everyone else followed her example. You had to be careful how you held it, or the fish and seaweed would fall out, leaving you with just two pieces of flat bread. The other difference, was that they served the tea with the meal, as well as afterwards. Krillgan was only able to get through half of what he had started eating for his breakfast, before he was full. Chitrah finished it for him. They all told their hosts how they enjoyed this breakfast. The elder and his wife were glad that they could be proper hosts. They even shared a piece of flat bread, but could not understand its appeal to these aliens.

After breakfast Chitrah told Krillgan the story of the Chagrian people on Deysum III, and why he has no horns, which is also why Krillgan will probably not have any horns either. Andriel asked Chitrah if Krillgan would have Devaronian horns. Chitrah did not think so, because the horns in both their species was a male trait, so because he did not have horns, Krillgan would not have horns. He would probably just have the horn stubs, like both his parents do. Krillgan asked every question he could think of, even if it did not make any sense, because he had permission. Chitrah answered his nonsense questions, by tickling him. When he started squealing as well as giggling, Andriel joined in. The elder's wife felt she had to intervene, or Krillgan would not be able to catch his breath, and asphyxiate. Krillgan assured her he was all right, and asked if they would tickle him some more. Andriel told him that they should listen to the elder, since this is her home. So Krillgan calmed down.

Chitrah was able to finish the story without any more interruptions from his son. Krillgan asked his mother, if her story was the same? Andriel told him it was not, and told him how the Devaronians came to Deysum III. Krillgan asked them if they would have married each other, if the Sith had not made them?

Chitrah told Krillgan about his parents, arranging for him to marry someone else, before he found out that he had to marry Andriel. Krillgan told them he was glad the Sith made them marry. Does that make him bad? Andriel and Chitrah each took turns, hugging and kissing their son. Assuring him that he was not bad. They told him, how in their travels, they talked about the same thing. They believe that somehow the force used the Sith, to make them marry, so that they could touch the lives of so many people. Something that they would not have been able to, if they had not married each other. They also believed the force wanted them to have him, because they were told that their first child would be a healer in many ways. This interested the Selkath elder and his wife, that they had a prophecy about their son. Andriel told them about the prophecy that the Iktotchi first officer shared with them, and how they asked the first officer, not to reveal to them, whether their first child was going to be a boy or girl. The Selkath were one of the few species that highly respected the Itotchi. For one who was not a Seer, to have such a dream, so far from her home world, gives even more power to the content of the dream. Krillgan asked them if that meant he was going to have brothers and sisters? Andriel told him that it did. He asked, "When?" Andriel laughed and told him they were working on it, which made all the adults laugh.

Krillgan could not understand, what the adults found so funny.

For lunch the Selkath served cooked shellfish of many different varieties, along with a white grain that had been boiled, and was a bit sticky, but tasted good when you poured some fish oil, and fish sauce on it. The Selkath do not normally eat shell fish, since they consider them scavengers, and can make you sick, if you eat them raw. The Selkath found the cooked shellfish, with this strange boiled grain, to be much more appealing, than the flatbread they served with breakfast. They were told that many alien species consider this to be a very expensive delicacy. Andriel, Chitrah, and Krillgan, all ate their fill, and commented on how good the meal was.

The elder and his wife suggested that they take a nap after lunch, and they would wake them, when they could take Krillgan for his swim. They all thought it was a good idea, and decided to take their nap in their swim tunics.

This time Andriel and Chitrah noticed the young adults, and children in the swim area when they took Krillgan, since there was many more of them, than had been the previous day. This time when Andriel took Krillgan's tunic off, she made sure his back was toward the Selkath. They played like they did the day before, since it was so much fun. They were all quite tired when they climbed back up onto the landing. They were looking forward to another nap. They did not sleep as long this time, because of the nap they took after lunch. When they got up, Krillgan went to play with his blocks. Chitrah was next to him, playing Hutt Wars on his computer. Andriel had taken out her computer and was showing the elder's wife the dress designs that she had made, and which ones she used, to tease Chitrah. Chitrah sensed they were talking about him, but left them alone. He knew if it was important Andriel would tell him about it.

When the elder returned, to let them know, when they could take Krillgan for a walk. He told them that they could have their dinner in the Smugglers' Cantina, after the walk. Arrangements had been made for them.

They went back to their spot, to watch the sunset. While they sat there, Andriel and Chitrah talked about the change in the diet they were being served. Andriel asked Krillgan what he had told the Selkath elder and his wife, when he returned by himself for dinner last night? Krillgan told them everything. Andriel and Chitrah both blushed when Krillgan told them why he knew they wanted some alone time. When Krillgan mentioned how all their tummies growled when they smelt the smell of cooked food coming from that house over there, Andriel knew that was the reason they had changed their diet.

Andriel thanked their son for being so honest with them, and gave him a hug and a kiss. Chitrah ruffled his hair, and hugged him. After their walk, they were eager to see what awaited them in the Cantina.

As there were no freighters in the spaceport that day, just the bounty hunter's gunship. They were the only customers in the Cantina. The proprietor seated them at a nice table, and handed them all menus. Krillgan felt important because he had been handed a menu, even though he still did not know how to read. Andriel asked the proprietor if he had any juice, and if he had any way to boost her son's seat, so that he would be more comfortable sitting at the table. The proprietor told her that he carries juices as a mix for drinks, so he would have no problem serving them all juice if they like. Andriel told him that a cup of juice for her son would be fine. The proprietor went away to find something for Krillgan to sit on. He came back with an arm full of cushions, which he placed on the table next to theirs. Andriel and Chitrah got up to help him select the right cushions for Krillgan. After Krillgan was seated comfortably, the proprietor went to get a cup of juice for him.

Instead of using one juice, he decided to use a little of each type, like he was mixing a drink. When he brought it to the table, Andriel asked him, what type of juice it was? The proprietor told her it was a special blend, just for Krillgan. Andriel and Chitrah were both interested in tasting Krillgan's special blend. Krillgan did feel special, and tasted his juice. He told the proprietor that it was good. The proprietor asked them if they needed time to go over the menu. Andriel asked him, what was his favourite food to make? He told her that the Smuggler's Burger, with a side order of fried cut up potatoes was his speciality. Andriel decided that that was what she wanted. Everyone else at the table wanted to try it as well. When the proprietor left to prepare their dinner, Krillgan passed his cup of juice around, so his parents could have a taste. The parents liked it and told Krillgan that they would ask the proprietor if he would include it on his menu as Krillgan's special juice. Krillgan liked that.

When the proprietor returned with their dinners, he asked them, what would they like to drink with their meal? Andriel asked him, what would he recommend? He recommended Marley's Brew, or if they want something stronger, Marley's Special Brew (Ox-Brew). Andriel asked him if it was brought here from Chalacta, the proprietor told them that it was, and how did they know that it came from there. Andriel told him that they have friends that live there, and when they visit, that is what they always buy them. The proprietor brought them a couple of cold brew. Then he asked them if he could bring his dinner to their table and join them.

While the proprietor went to get his dinner, Andriel let Krillgan taste what she was drinking. Krillgan told her that it would go good with his juice. After sipping some Brew, she agreed that it would go good with his juice. In the kitchen, while the proprietor was preparing his own dinner, he told the elder that he was right, they are a very nice family. They make you feel good about the future. He then offered the elder a bottle of Marley's Brew on the house, so he could taste what they were drinking. The elder accepted. After tasting it, he decided to take it home to share with his wife, he knew the family was in safe hands, and he would be back before they were finished their meal.

The next morning when Andriel and Chitrah returned from bathing, they found a human in the elder's home, he had light gray hair, and appeared to be around the same age as Mr. Radcliff. The elder introduced him as Captain Richard Solo. He would be taking them on his ship, to a safe home for them. Andriel felt naked when she was introduced to him, since she had nothing on, under her swimming tunic, and hoped it was not clinging to her. They quickly went into the bedroom to change, and to wake Krillgan for breakfast. Krillgan was already awake, when he first heard the stranger's voice in the common room. He just pretended to be asleep when his parents came into the bedroom, so his parents would not feel like they had to hide their naked bodies from him, while they dressed. They took longer dressing when they knew he was awake, and he wanted to get out there as quickly as possible, to meet this new stranger.

Captain Richard shook his hand like he was an adult, when they were introduced. He was asked to join them for breakfast, but he politely refused. The elder told him that he expected him and his crew to treat their new passengers, like they are royalty. The Captain told him that they always do. The elder than told him to treat them better than royalty, to treat them like special members of their own families. Captain Richard told him, that that might not be a good idea, most of his crew don't get along with their families. The elder was very flustered, and did not know what to say. Captain Richard told the elder that he would have the crew treat them, like they were his own son and daughter, so the young one would be treated like his grandson. The elder thanked him.

The Captain smiled and winked at Krillgan, who had been following all this talk very closely. He then offered to take them to his ship after they finished breakfast, to show them around. The elder told him that the boy could not go with them, it would cause too many disruptions outside. When Krillgan was full, he placed the rest of what was prepared for him, for his father to finish. Then patiently sat there, in case they decided to talk about something else that might be interesting. He was disappointed, so after a while he got up to play with his blocks. When Andriel and Chitrah finished, Andriel got up and kissed Krillgan on the forehead, and told him that they would be back soon. She could tell from his body language, that he was unhappy, because he was not allowed to go with them.

As they departed, Andriel and Chitrah noticed the elder hand the Captain a crystal container, that at one time contained a very expensive perfume. They assumed that it was the payment for their transportation.

At the spaceport, they saw a black ship larger than most freighters. They saw a gun turret on top of what looked like the front section. They saw a second gun turret, on top near where the tail section started. Then a third one on the bottom near the back of the tail section. They both wondered why it was so far back. They saw a ramp that was attached to the ship near the back of the front section, but opened forward. Captain Richard told them the ship is called the "Fenelar Phoenix". They asked him why it was named that. He told them that the Fenelar had designed the ship to be used as an escort ship for the Kandosi-type dreadnoughts they were building. It is the sixth prototype, and the Fenelar had not yet taken it to production. They did not have a chance, because the Mandalorians invaded Fenel and exterminated them. The Fenelar were able to destroy all their plans for the escort, but because the dreadnoughts were in full production, the Mandalorians were able to steal the plans for those ships, and continued to produce them at the Fenel Shipyards. They are still the main ship in the Mandalorians' fleets. Chitrah asked him how he knew all this information. He told them he had a friend that used to work in Republic Intelligence, he asked him to look it up, when he bought it as scrap, at the end of the last Mandalorian War. As they approached the ramp to board the ship, they noticed that the ship resembled a tadpole with a short tail. At the top of the ramp, they found the openings to the cargo bays on either side. The cargo bays appeared larger than any they had seen on a regular freighter. There was enough of a walkway between the cargo bays and the ramp, so one did not have to worry about losing their balance, and falling onto the ramp. As they moved forward, they found the hatch ways in the outer bulkhead, just past the end of the cargo bays. That was how the ship connected to spaceports in orbit. One on either side of the ship. Right in the middle of this section, was the engineer's cabin. It was the only cabin, with a door on each end. It was also double wide. With the engineers sleeping area on one side, and his workshop on the other. Chitrah told the Captain that he was a field computer technician, and would be happy to help his engineer in whatever way he needed it. He could also run diagnostics on all the equipment on his bridge. The Captain said he would mention it to his engineer. Next to the engineers cabin was the crews' washroom. The Captain assured Andriel that she would not have to use it. Her husband on the other hand, probably would. Chitrah stuck his head through the door, and quickly pulled it out. Andriel smelt an unpleasant odour coming through the doorway when Chitrah opened it. Chitrah told the Captain that he needs to work on the crew, to improve their level of hygiene. Captain Richard laughed, and told him that he would make sure the crew cleaned it properly, before he came aboard. Next to the washroom was the crew lounge, called the common room on most freighters. Andriel mentioned that they will need to clean this room as well, since it would also be Krillgan's play room. Captain Richard made note of that. The crew was not going to be happy that they would have to scrub the ship down, from stem to stern, and from top to bottom, before these passengers will be allowed to come aboard. With the price the elder just paid him, they deserve to be pampered. On either side of the crew lounge, against the outer bulkheads, were two crew cabins per side. They all had double bunks, but the crews that lived in them, used the upper bunks for storage. Captain Richard told Chitrah he would be given the empty crew cabin, once his crew had re- organised themselves. The bulkhead of the crews' washroom had a ladder attached to it in the middle, in the crew lounge. It led up to the gun turret that they saw from the outside. Andriel asked the Captain, if it would be safe for their son to climb up to it? Captain Richard knew that she meant, my son will be climbing up that ladder, make sure that everything is safe. He assured her that it would be child safe. The other bulkhead of the crew lounge was actually the back of the captain's, and first officer's cabins. Each cabin opened right across from one of the two doors opening to the bridge. Captain Richard showed them his room. They could tell that he was a well organised man, with a nice streak of creativity. They would feel comfortable having long conversations with this man. He told Andriel that she and her son would be staying in the first officer's cabin. Unfortunately the bunk was not big enough for the three of them to stay there. When he opened the door an unusual, and unpleasant odour wafted out. The room was in total chaos, quite a contrast to the captain's cabin. Andriel had no desire to step foot in it, to check it out. Captain Richard was obviously embarrassed. He assured Andriel that it would be completely cleaned and sanitized before they came aboard. Andriel told him, "and sterilized". The embarrassed Captain agreed. He then opened one of the doors leading to the bridge. The bridge had an unusual design. It had three tiers, each tier narrower than the one above it. The two doors opened onto the top tier which held the engineer's station. The engineer could monitor the integrity of the entire ship from there, as well as receiving warnings of imminent equipment failures. The next tier down was the captain's station. He could control the entire ship from there, but usually left control in the other stations. The captain's station also had jumper seats on either side of the captain's chair. So that visitors or crew, could sit and talk with the captain. The lowest tier was the pilot's seat, usually assigned to the first officer. It was laid out similar to a starfighter's seat and instrument panel. Including a gun triggering mechanism. The captain explained that there were two turbo laser cannons mounted on either side of the bridge. That had a 15° swivel. Any starfighter that happen to find itself in front of the bridge, could be shoot down by either the pilot or the captain. Giving the ship the equivalent of four gun turrets for fighting off pirates. Chitrah asked if that was why the bottom turret was so far back on this ship. Captain Richard told him no. In space this ship has a battle mode. The tail of the ship would come down underneath. So the ship resembled the symbol used for credits. In its original design, the cargo bays were actually hangers, where starfighters were stored, and maintained. They would be wheeled up to the area just past the ramp, and fly out through a force field. Protected by the second gun turret that had been on top, but was now facing back. The other thing that happens in battle mode, is, the armour that is below the bridge, covering up the missile batteries, slides up to protect the bridge, and everything is seen in virtual mode. Unfortunately the Fenelar had an unusual missile design, which has not been replicated. Sure armourers could make a couple dozen that would fit in the system. But this ship was designed to carry a couple hundred thousand into battle, and would use them all. Andriel and Chitrah could tell that the Captain was rather proud of his ship, and of what it was once capable of doing. They thanked the Captain for the tour, and asked when he wanted them to come back with their luggage. He told them that they probably won't be ready to leave until well after sunset. He would come for them, when the ship's ready.

They went back to the elder's home, and Andriel described the cabin they would be staying in, on the ship, along with all the smells, to Krillgan. Krillgan felt better that he did not go with his parents to see the ship. He would not have liked seeing that dirty, smelly, cabin. Captain Richard headed straight to the cantina, where he assumed his crew had disappeared to, as soon as he left the ship. He berated the crew on the condition they left the ship. He was giving an influential couple a tour of their ship. Almost every door they opened had unsavoury odours come out of it. "Can you imagine how embarrassed I felt when I opened the door to the first officer's cabin, for a beautiful lady, so that she could see where she will be staying for the next while, having it smell worse than an army latrine, and looking like a gale had blown through it. I promised her that it would be cleaned and sanitized before they returned. She made me promise that it would also be sterilized. You have a whole ship to clean, and you haven't even started unloading the cargo."

The crew ran out of the cantina, as fast as their feet could carry them. They had never seen the Captain so upset. The proprietor came over to the Captain with a drink in his hand. He felt Captain Richard needed it. The Captain downed it all at once. The proprietor told him that they are really good people. Captain Richard asked who? The proprietor said, the family he is taking. The Captain said, "I know! That is what was so embarrassing. If they would have been the uppity nobility type. I just would have laughed inside. When I showed them the engineer's cabin. The messy workbench did not bother them. The guy even offered his services to help the engineer, claiming to be a field computer technician. They accepted that mess. It was the other mess, the kind that should not be there, that bothered them. They knew it, and I knew it."

The proprietor suggested that he sit down and relax. Give his crew time to redeem themselves. They have been their worse, now it was time for them to be there best. Captain Richard slapped the proprietor on his back, and told him that he was one of the reasons he keeps coming back to this place. He then ordered one more drink for each of them, before he heads back to the ship. He would also be sending one of his crew over later with something he picked up at one of his stops. The proprietor could hardly wait. This Captain always finds good stuff. He has never been disappointed.

Captain Richard went back to the spaceport hoping that the elder would be there. The elder was overseeing the Selkath that were helping to offload the ship. He told the elder, that it would not be a good idea to leave the Bounty Hunter's ship, sitting at the spaceport. Too many people will come, asking too many questions. Which will be hard not to answer, with his gunship just sitting there. The elder asked the Captain, what did he suggest? Captain Richard asked the elder if there was a place where a lot of his cousins like to swim. The elder asked if he was suggesting that they park it in the ocean. He nodded his head. The elder asked if the ship would release many contaminants. Captain Richard admitted that there would be some, because they would need to have just about every outside hatch and access panel open, which means that synthetic lubricants would end up in the water.

"The worst of the contaminants are in the engine room. We can make sure that room is completely sealed. So that no water can go in, and nothing can come out."

The elder asked if there was anything else. Captain Richard told him that if any of the Selkath have removed anything from the ship, it has to be put back. The elder told him that the only thing his people have, that belonged to the bounty hunter, was his rifle, which he threw away, when the Great Mother killed him. The Captain told him that it has to go back on the ship.

That evening, when the elder told them it was safe for them to go for their walk. He asked if they would be stopping in at the cantina for their dinner. Andriel told them that they would be coming back to have one more Selkath dinner with them, since it would be their last one together. The elder and his wife, both had tears in their eyes, and were hugging one another. He told his wife that it was wrong of them not to let the adults partake of the special fish eggs. They were special just like their son. The wife agreed, and suggested the other elders be present for this meal. This was a holy time. The elder went out right away so the others would know that their presence was required. The wife did what she could to prepare. She was glad that others would be coming to help.

When Andriel, Chitrah, and Krillgan entered the elder's home. They were surprised to see all the other Selkath there. The Selkath all stopped what they were doing, and bowed to them. When the elder moved, they all went back to what they were doing. The elder asked if they had a nice walk. Just like he normally did. They told him it was very nice, and Krillgan was happy to see for himself the ship they would be leaving on. The elder was a little surprised and asked if Krillgan has Chagrian vision. Chitrah said yes. This was something else that was new, the other elders were happy to be here, to hear it for themselves.

The elder had them sit in the nest prepared for each of them. He then introduced the other elders to them. Each elder that was introduced, bowed to each of them, then went to his assigned seating area. When all the elders were seated the elder's wife had the special privilege of presenting each one of them with a small bowl of the special fish eggs. Chitrah politely commented that he was given the wrong bowl by mistake. The elder told him that the mistake was theirs.

At first they thought that Krillgan was the only special one. Now they know for a fact, that all three of them are special, and deserved that recognition. Andriel suspected that nothing else was going to happen until they finished eating the fish eggs. Chitrah and Krillgan followed her lead, like they always did in an uncertain situation. When they were finished the elder's wife was happy to collect their empty bowls and spoons. Then the other wives came out with trays of pieces of fish and seaweed, and sat down beside their husbands. The meal did not start until the last wife had sat down. The elder explained that this was their way of blessing them, so that they themselves, and through them their community, would be blessed. Andriel told them that they were happy to bless them. That their time with them was a true blessing. The Selkath that were present felt truly honoured sharing dinner with such people. They were thankful that the elder and his wife were so considerate, in asking that they share this time together. It was just as the meal was winding down, that they could hear a knocking at the door. The elder opened the door, and Captain Richard asked permission to enter. The elder let him in. The Captain was surprised to see so many Selkath in the home. He bowed out of respect, because he recognised many of them, which pleased the elders, he then bowed toward Andriel, Chitrah, and Krillgan, because he felt it was the thing to do in this situation. Which pleased the elders even more. They had chosen the right captain. Captain Richard told them that the ship was ready if they were. Chitrah asked the elder if anything else was required of them. The elder asked if they had finished packing everything. Andriel told them they were all packed. The elder told them that they were free to go with the Captain. They would bring their luggage to the ship. As Andriel, Chitrah, and Krillgan, got up to go with the Captain, one of the elders slipped outside with a large sea shell in his hand. They heard him blow it like a horn, than they heard other shells being blown in reply, all over the raft. The rest of the Selkath in the room, got up and bowed toward the family. Krillgan realised that the elder and his wife were at the right height for him, and went up to each of them to give them a hug around their necks. Which made them both hold hands and cry. Then he followed the Captain, with his parents' right behind him. Outside they found the path to the spaceport, lined with Selkath families, holding fish oil lamps. When the people saw them, they bowed before them until they had walked by. Then they joined the procession to the spaceport.

The crew from the ship wondered what all the commotion was about, careful not to let Captain Richard see them. They could not believe that there were so many Selkath living on this raft. Where did they live? Since they could only see rubble everywhere. The only building they ever saw was the cantina. They finally saw the Captain approaching, but could not see who was behind him. All they saw were the Selkath bowing to someone. Where is this beautiful lady Captain Richard mentioned? Is there such a thing as a Selkath princess? How would they know if she was beautiful? Has the Captain been on the ship too long, and gone native? They stopped asking each other silly questions, when the Captain came closer. Captain Richard wanted them lined up near the top of the ramp for inspection. He told them that this was their chance to redeem themselves.

When they came to the ship, before the Captain stepped onto the ramp. Andriel, Chitrah, and Krillgan, turned to the people and bowed to show them their respect. Then they followed the Captain up the ramp. When they stepped off the ramp. Captain Richard ordered the ship's computer to raise the ramp and seal the ship. This way the people outside would know that it was time for them to go home. He then introduced his crew. The First Officer is a Falleen, who had taken the human name of Fredrick, Fred for short. The Engineer is a human named Bikto. Then there is Crewman First Class, a Gotal named Pula. Finally there is the second Crewman First Class, a Shistavanen named Coris.

The Falleen are a reptilian humanoid species from the planet Falleen in the Mid Rim. They are considered a handsome species, by many of the other humanoid species. They stand on average 1.6 meters in height, so they were not considered a tall species. But they are considered exotic to look upon. With scaled blue-green skin, and a spiny ridge running down the center of their back. Being reptilian in nature they have the ability to change their skin colour to red or orange. They have a large lung capacity, enabling them to remain under water for long periods of time. The females of the species differ from the males, in having a smaller spinal ridge, a lighter skin colour, and greater difficulty in changing their skin colour. Unlike most reptilian species, the Falleen can, and do grow hair on their heads. The females like to grow their hair long, and adorn them with colourful objects. The males like to wear their hair in a single braid, or topknot. The First Officer wore his in a topknot. The main reason Falleen appear so attractive to other species, is because they can exude pheromones at will, which they use to control and manipulate others. Even driving other species to the point where they lust after them. They can also exude allelochemical transmitters that produce specific emotional reactions in others, such as fear, desire, anger, doubt, and confusion. Because of their ability to influence others emotions. The Falleen themselves try to be stoic, and not show any emotions.

The Gotal are a humanoid species native to Antar 4, of the Prindar system of the Inner Rim. They stand an average of 1.8 meters in height. They have thick Gray-Brown skin on their faces to protect them from the extreme elements of their home world. They have red-tinted eyes, allowing them to distinguish shapes in near darkness. They are covered in Gray-Brown fur for warmth, and a flattened nose that only protrudes a centimeter from their faces. Their most notable features are the two cone shaped horns that form the top of their heads. Many Xenobiologists believe that the Gotals ability to be sensitive to one another's feelings is in their horns. Through their horns they can detect other creatures, up to ten meters away, in near total darkness. Unfortunately, their perceptions can be dulled through repeated exposure to electromagnetic radiation.

Now that Andriel, Chitrah, and Krillgan, were aboard, the crew recognised the beautiful lady, the Captain had mentioned. The First Officer started emitting pheromones to make himself appear more attractive. Krillgan walked right up to him and told him to stop it. The First Officer said, "Stop what?"

"Stop releasing those stinky smells, that changes the way people think about you."

The rest of the crew fell in love with this little boy, who was willing to stand up to their First Officer. The Captain came up behind Krillgan, and ordered the First Officer to stop exuding pheromones and other chemicals, while this family is aboard. The First Officer protested, "Then how am I supposed to get the others to do my work for me?"

Andriel and Chitrah started laughing.

"Did I just say out loud what I think I said?"

The crew replied, "Yes you did!" "We all heard you."

The First Officer was clearly embarrassed. Normally he could cover up such blunders, by emitting pheromones, which would confuse the others, so that they would think they probably heard something different than what was actually said. But he can't. Not with this little kid around. Fred was hoping this was going to be a very short trip. The Captain realised that the next few months, were going to be a very good test of his first officer's abilities.

The Captain ordered his crew to stay where they were, while their guests inspected the ship. The crew clued in that these were not ordinary passengers, and they would have to watch themselves around them. They suddenly heard some banging on the outside of the ship. The Captain ordered the ship's computer to drop the ramp. They found some of the Selkath elders standing there. They had the luggage. The Captain ordered both crewmen to retrieve the luggage. He then went down and apologised to the elders. They told him that they were worried that they would leave without it. Captain Richard assured them that he did not think the passengers would let him go very far, once they realised they did not have their luggage aboard. They bowed to the Captain, then they saw the family at the top of the ramp. The family bowed to them, as the ramp lifted back up into the ship. The elders were happy, they did a good thing.

Captain Richard continued the inspection tour, this time with his two crewmen following along, with the luggage. The crew had done a very good job cleaning the ship. Andriel, Chitrah, and Krillgan all approved. When they opened the door to the First Officer's cabin, which was now Andriel and Krillgan's cabin. They could smell that it had indeed been chemically sterilized. The mattress was clean with a neat pile of fresh linens and blankets folded on top. The Captain informed them that they had come from his personal supply. They went all the way in to check the washroom facilities. Andriel looked at Krillgan and asked him what he thought. Krillgan said he approved. Andriel turned to the Captain and told him, they will take it. Captain Richard did not realise he had been holding his breath, until he started breathing again. Andriel than told the crewmen which luggage belonged in her room. They then went to check the cabin that had been assigned to Chitrah. Andriel told the Captain that she noticed that there was no computer terminal in her room. Captain Richard told her that she was correct. None of the cabins had computer terminals, except the captain's.

"Yet you talk with the ships computer."

"That is also correct. You have to remember that this was a warship, where keeping secrets was important. Only the computer has the ability to listen to every part of the ship. Not even the Captain has the authority to order the computer to give access to conversations anywhere on the ship. We can talk through the computer, but both parties have to be willing participants. For instance, if the engineer is working on a part of the ship, and he remembered that he needs to ask me something, he could ask the computer to connect us, and we could carry on a conversation as if we were both in the same room. Or suppose you just climbed into bed and remembered you had to ask your husband something, you could ask the computer to connect you."

Chitrah asked him, "Does that mean, if I want my wife to sing me a lullaby, I can ask the computer to connect us?"

"If you are going to have your wife sing lullabies, I think that they should be piped through the whole ship."

"Will the computer do that?"

"It will, if I authorise it. Certain of us, are allowed to make announcements to the whole ship, and I believe lullabies belong in that category."

The two crewmen agreed. Andriel was embarrassed by the conversation, but in a good way. Krillgan loved hearing his mother sing lullabies, and also thought it was something to be shared with the whole crew.

Chitrah's room was very plain and sanitary. Andriel could understand why the crewmen would use the top bunk as a storage counter. It would help to personalise the room. After Chitrah's luggage was placed in his room. Captain Richard ordered the computer to prepare for departure. They could hear the computer broadcast to the whole ship, "All crewmen to your stations. All passengers to the crew lounge. Prepare for departure."

When the Cerean Bounty Hunter dropped out of hyperspace, she wonder why the Mandalorian had chosen the Pyrshak System to rendezvous with the freighter. As she flew further into the system, she started to notice the starfighter debris. The freighter must have been forced out of hyperspace by pirates. The Mandalorian must have been forced to defend his prey. She was able to follow the trail left by both the freighter and the gunship, so she hoped that that meant that the family was okay. She followed their trail all the way to Manaan, and saw that they both descended to the surface. She orbited Manaan a couple of times. She was able to detect the freighter leaving the planet, but not the gunship. Other ships have come and gone from the planet, but she could not tell how long ago, that had been. Well at least she will not have to force the gunship to land. Time to confront the Mandalorian.

When she landed at the spaceport, she was surprised to find that her ship, was the only ship. She came out of the ship fully armed, except for her rocket launcher. Too great a risk in hurting one of the family. She was expecting that this was some sort of trap. He had only delayed her coming here, maybe he wanted to finish her off, so that he would not have to worry about her trying to steal his prey, as he took them back to the Sith for his reward.

The Selkath could not believe it, another bounty hunter. One of them went to warn the elder, and to ask what they should do. The Cerean cautiously walked around the edge of the spaceport, ready to dive over the debris if a shoot rang out. Nothing happened. She decided to follow the most worn trail, to see where it ended. At the end of the trail she saw the cantina. She quickly slipped in, blaster pistol ready. The proprietor was wiping some glasses when she slipped in. He told her that she can put her blaster away, there was no-one there. She put her blaster away, and asked him where the Mandalorian Bounty Hunter was? His only answer was, "Not Here!"

"What about the family he was chasing?"

"Not Here!"

"Where are they?"

"Not Here!"

"Is that the only answer you are going to give me?"

He smiled, and said, "Yes!"

She smiled as well, this was a good sign. She doubted that he would work for the Mandalorian. It was strange how quickly strangers would agree to help this family. She stepped out of the cantina and started walking back to the spaceport. The first Selkath she saw, she approached, and asked them if she could talk with one of their elders. The Selkath told her they did not want to talk to her. She said, "They may after they hear what I have to say."

Because she indicated that she wanted to talk first, the Selkath thought he should go to the elder. Maybe he would be interested in what she had to say. The Selkath asked her to stay where she was, and disappeared in the rubble. A short time later he reappeared, and asked her to follow him. He led her down a path, and came to a hole in the rubble. He told her to enter, the elder was expecting her. She was surprised with how nice it was inside. This was a place where things were not as they first appeared. She was starting to like this place. The elder motioned her to sit, without greeting her. She was sure that he had no intention of speaking, until he had heard her out, and maybe not even then.

She sat down and told the elder that just recently, she had accepted a most unusual contract. A wealthy land owner had hired her, because his wife, who is human had adopted a Devaronian women as her daughter. They had heard that the Sith were now hunting her daughter and her family, and they wanted my help. The elder put up his hand to stop her. He asked, if she knew the name of this daughter? "Andriel!"

"This Andriel, was she married to a Devaronian?"

"No! She was married to a Chagrian from Deysum III, and they have a son named Krillgan."

"This human woman is her mother?"

"She would be her 2nd mother, because she had adopted Andriel."

The elder was very excited, he got up and asked his wife to look after their guest, than he ran out the door. His wife offered the Cerean Bounty Hunter a cup of seaweed tea. Then went and retrieved a cup for herself and sat down. The Cerean was getting the impression that the Selkath were not a very talkative bunch. So she just sat there and sipped her tea. A short time later, the elder returned, he said something quietly to his wife, and sat down. His wife got up, and started busying herself. The elder asked her to be patient, he has asked others to come hear her story. She will need to start from the beginning again, after they had all arrived. In a short time, couples started coming through the entrance way. The men would sit down with the elder and the women would go join the elder's wife. They did not say anything to her, so she just sat there sipping her tea.

Shortly after the last couple showed up, the women gave all the men a cup of tea, and handed her another cup, taking away the one she had. The ladies came back with a second cup, and handed it to the men, than they sat down, and retrieved the second cup for themselves. The elder told her they were ready.

She started telling them about this unusual contract she accepted, on behalf of this wealthy man's wife. About her quest to fulfill this contract, the best she could. She told about following the Mandalorian through the galaxy, and how often he was frustrated by this family. Losing their trail again and again. She told about her blunder in leading the Mandalorian back to their trail. She told them about her ship being sabotaged by his people on Mandalore, and how it delayed her coming here. She told them that she was fully expecting to confront, and kill the Mandalorian Bounty Hunter, for the disrespect he showed her, by having his people sabotage her ship. Even though it would mean that the Sith would than place a price on her head.

When she finished, the Selkath talked amongst themselves, then quieted down. The elder told her that her contract is fulfilled. The family is safe. Soon they will be where the Sith will not find them.

"So the family is alive and well?"

"Yes!"

"Can you tell me where they are?"

The elder smiled, "We do not know that ourselves."

The Cerean was satisfied. The family had just done the impossible, just like her mother believed. She thanked the elder for sharing what he did. She could understand their hesitance to tell her. As she was getting up, the elder asked her one last thing. "Is there a chance that she has a third mother?"

"With this woman, I would not be surprised."

She did not want to tell them that she herself has 25 mothers, besides her birth mother. All her father's other wives were considered her mother.

"Why? Is that important?"

"We have a prophecy about helping a woman and her family. The woman is identified in the prophecy as having three mothers, from two species."

"What happens if you help this woman?"

"We will be blessed. Her offspring will return someday to start a new era for us. We have never encountered a woman before, who had more than one mother. Andriel has two mothers from two species. We were wondering if she might be the one."

The Cerean promised them, that if she finds anything else out about Andriel that would help them, she would return and tell them. The elder promised her that she would be rewarded if she did. To the Cerean, this was a contract.

After taking off, Captain Richard called a meeting for the officers in his cabin. They placed Coris in the captain's chair to sound the alarm, in case pirates show up. In his cabin, the Captain showed them what the Selkath had given him as payment for transporting the family. The other two wanted to know what it was. He told them it was pure Kolto. They asked the Captain what it was worth. He held up a small vial that he had filled earlier from the crystal bottle. He told them that the Kolto in the vial was probably worth three times what he would normally have charged the family, for passage on this ship. He handed the vial to the first officer, and told him to sell it at their next stop, to an apothecary, and to stop by their market and pick up more vials. "After we sell the contents of this bottle, I think I will be ready to retire."

The Captain did not tell them, that the elder promised to refill the bottle at no charge. When they exited the captain's cabin. They found Andriel and Chitrah standing there, waiting to talk to the Captain. Captain Richard invited them into his cabin. They wanted to know where they were going, and how long it was going to take, to get there. He told them that they would need to consider this ship as their home. They have many stops to make before he would be able to take them to their final destination. They also have to be careful that they are not seen on this ship. For that reason none of them were allowed to leave this ship, until they have reached their final destination. When they are close, than he will tell them where they are going, and what type of life they can expect to have there.

Andriel and Chitrah looked at each other, this was not the answer they expected. Andriel told the Captain that if this was to be their home, than she needs to set up housekeeping. She needs to be able to wash and dry her family's clothes. She needs him to buy fresh fruits and vegetables that do not need to be cooked, at each stop they make, so that she can be sure her son is getting the right nutrients he needs to grow. Because he is growing, she will need a sewing machine, and cloth. So that she can sew new clothes for her son. She will pay for the machine and cloth, and take it with her when they finally reach their destination. Chitrah told the Captain that he will need a full set of cobbler's equipment, so that he can make new shoes for his son, and to replace the footwear that he and his wife are wearing, because they have taken a beating these past few years. He will pay for the equipment and materials, and take it with him, when he leaves the ship. Captain Richard objected, "I thought you were a field computer technician."

Chitrah told the Captain, that his father had trained him to be a cobbler. It was the Sith who had trained him to be a field computer technician. Captain Richard suspected he was more than both.

The Captain promised them that he would do something about the laundry situation, and he would make sure that they will have their fresh fruit and vegetables, but he could not promise more than that. Things were just not that simple. Andriel told him. "I need a sewing machine. Make it happen."

The next day Chitrah decided that they should get back to their daily routine of working out with their self-defence training, and Krillgan's martial arts training. While they were walking to the port side cargo bay, in their practice outfits. Coris noticed the outfit that Krillgan was wearing, with the emblem of the martial arts institute. He ran up and grabbed Krillgan by the shoulder, and gruffly asked him where he got it. Chitrah turned when he heard him yelp, because Krillgan had grabbed his thumb, and twisted it, forcing him to one knee.

"You recognised the emblem, and what it stood for. Yet you failed to respect the person wearing it. Why?"

"This is a Shistavanen Institute, and I never heard of them accepting aliens into their ranks."

"Yet it is not something that could just be picked up anywhere. Nor would you find it in the trash. It is only given to someone who has earned it."

"My apologies, I miss-understood. It has been a long time since I have been to Uvena Prime. May I inquire as to how your son obtained his outfit?"

"Krillgan you may let go of his thumb now."

Coris was obviously relieved when Krillgan let go. Chitrah told him about the time he first visited Uvena Prime, and how the head instructor found out about his self-defence training, and asked him to give a demonstration for his students, and how he was allowed to sit in, when he instructed his class. The next time he visited Uvena Prime with his family. He was able to give them a much better demonstration with his wife, on self-defence, along with a short demonstration of some other martial arts techniques, he had picked up in his travels. The instructor was impressed with the improvement in his skills, and invited his family to live with the instructor's family at the institute. He accepted Chitrah into his advanced martial arts class as a student. Krillgan was close to the same age as his youngest son, and they would play together. It was only natural for his youngest son to want Krillgan to take the basic training with him, so that they could practise together.

"When it came time for us to leave, the instructor's youngest son asked permission of his father, to give Krillgan his practise uniform. Andriel made Krillgan ask the instructor, when he was allowed to wear the uniform, to show the proper respect to the institute, which pleased the instructor very much. Since we are going to continue his training, he is allowed to wear his practise uniform."

Coris bowed to Chitrah and Krillgan, as he was still on his knees. Again he apologised, and asked if he could be taught by Chitrah as well. Chitrah told him to be at the port side cargo bay in one hour, since he must first workout with his wife. Coris said he would be there. Coris went to the rest of the crew, to convince them to take the martial arts training with him. He told them it would help them if they were ever boarded by pirates. It did not appeal to them. Than he told them that they would handle themselves better in a bar fight, if they had martial arts training. Now they were interested.

Fred decided to come along for the entertainment value it would provide. He did not think he would learn much, training with a child. At the appointed time, everyone except the Captain, entered the cargo bay, and sat beside Krillgan against the bulkhead, to watch Andriel and Chitrah wrap up their training. The new students could see that Andriel and Chitrah did not hold anything back as they trained. Coris was getting excited about this training, just watching them. When they finished, Andriel helped Chitrah out of his practise outfit, since it would have been hard for the new students to respect him as an instructor, when he looked like he was a 100 kilos overweight.

Chitrah knelt in the center of the cargo bay, and asked the students to kneel in a line in front of him. He could tell that Fred thought this was a big joke, and was not taking this seriously. Chitrah asked Fred to step forward. When he did, Chitrah pointed with his left arm to the darkness at the far end of the cargo bay, and asked him what he saw? When Fred turned his body to look in the direction Chitrah had pointed, Chitrah hit him hard with his left forearm on the upper calf muscles on the back of his legs. Causing his knees to buckle forward. He then reached up with his right arm grabbing Fred by the front of the shirt. Hauling him down, slamming his back onto the floor of the cargo bay. The whole time he did this he did not look at Fred, but kept his eyes on his students.

He spoke to Fred. "If you do not respect me, if you do not respect your fellow students, if you do not respect what will be taught here, you should not be here. Do you want to stay, or do you want to go?"

"I want to stay sir."

"Mr. Coris, what am I?"

"You are an instructor sir."

"What do the Shistavanen call their instructors?" "They call them Grengrai."

"So how should you address me?"

"As Grengrai!"

"Mr. Fred."

"Yes Grengrai!"

Chitrah released his shirt. "Take your place in line."

Chitrah told them that he would not be able to train them, fully. Since they had no practise mats on the floor, and he did not want them to injure themselves.

When the Cerean Bounty Hunter arrived back on Mandalore, she was able to park her ship, near the cantina. The cantina owner was both surprised and pleased that she had returned unharmed. When the government heard that she had returned, there was a bit of a kafuffle. They sent a representative to talk with her. He asked her, where the Mandalorian Bounty Hunter was? She told him that she did not know. She tracked him to Manaan, then the trail died. He then asked about the people he was hunting. She told him the same thing. She tracked them to Manaan, then the trail died. He asked her, why she was chasing the Mandalorian? She told him that she fully intended to kill him, for disrespecting her and her ship. The official thanked her for her honesty. He then asked if she could stick around for a while, he may need to ask a few questions. She told the official that things were not free to her, to stay here. He turned to the cantina owner. "Do you have rooms for rent here?"

The owner said he did.

"We will pick up her room and board, while she is here."

"What about my drinks?"

The official rolled his eyes, "We will also pick up her drinks."

The cantina owner smiled. She was a good negotiator. Now that she was back, he could expect a few more people from the spaceport, wanting to come in and speak with her.

More than a cycle later, the old freighter landed on Mandalore. The old captain was surprised to see a government official waiting to talk with him. He also noticed that the Bounty Hunter's hanger had burnt to the ground, he wondered who was left from the crew. The official asked the old captain, if it was true that he took the people that the bounty hunter was hunting as passengers on his ship. He told them only until the bounty hunter caught up with them.

"Did he catch up with you?"

The captain told him about being knocked out of hyperspace, by pirates in the Pyrshak System. How the Bounty Hunter's gunship dropped out a short time later, and he dealt with the pirates. How the husband had commandeered the gun turret keeping the bounty hunter at bay until they landed on Manaan.

"What did the Bounty Hunter do on Manaan?"

"I don't know. He told me to leave."

"Does he usually do that?"

"No! Normally he will let me hang around, than we will split what they have on their person."

"Could the starfighter attack have been a setup?"

"I don't know? They did not have a support ship anywhere, and it did not look like any of the pirates survived."

The official thanked him, then he walked over to the cantina. He asked the Cerean what she thinks the Bounty Hunter did. She told him that she did not know. Maybe he realised the Republic or someone else would pay him a lot more for the family, than the Sith were offering. Maybe he killed the family. When he realised he was not going to get any bounty, he ditched his ship into the sea, and caught the next freighter off of the planet. The official told her that he was thinking the same thing. She was free to go. She said it was almost dinnertime, could she get one more meal off of them before she leaves. The official nodded at the cantina owner.

After he left, the cantina owner told her he would have given it to her anyway, on the house. She told him that she knew that, but it tastes different when the government pays for it. They both laughed.

The engineer really appreciated Chitrah's help with the electronics. He wished that he could get his hands on a rig like he has. He was very disappointed when he found out it was custom built, and the Captain was not letting him off the ship, so that he could go buy the parts for another one. He also did not like the list of things the Captain gave him to buy. He knew that it was for the family. But if they were let off the ship, they could do their own laundry planet side, like the crew did, and they could buy their own fruit and vegetables. Krillgan also asked him to buy him some juice. He could not say no to the little guy.

Andriel was happy with the double washtub the engineer installed, against the bulkhead, of the crews' washroom, right next to the ladder. She thought she heard someone scream in the crews' washroom, when she turned on the tap for the hot water. They must have been taking a shower. She also liked that the engineer had strung up some wire near the ceiling, in the hallway on Chitrah's side, next to the crews' lounge, so that they could hang up their clothes, so that they could air dry. He also strung up some wire in her cabin, so that she could hang up her underwear to dry, without the crew looking at it. He even bought laundry soap without being asked. It gave her something to do with her time, until she obtained her sewing machine.

When they entered the cargo bay for their next workout, they were surprised to find thick, interlocking mats on the cargo bay floor, covering a good part of the cargo bay. There was also a practise bag hanging from the ceiling near one corner of the cargo bay. Krillgan appropriated a couple of mats, and placed them on the floor of their cabin. He suspected the floor panels could be moved, and he did not want anyone spying on his mother. Andriel did not ask him why he did it. It was definitely more comfortable when getting out of the bed in the morning.

She thought it might have something to do with his having to go around barefoot, since his shoes were now too small. Chitrah had tried soaking them, and stuffing them full of rags as they dried. Trying to expand them. Though it was better, they still hurt his feet, so Chitrah told him to stop wearing them.

The Mandalorian Government had the misfortune of notifying the Dark Council that the Bounty Hunter and his prey have disappeared. They have placed a bounty on his head, dead or alive, equivalent to the bounty he expected from capturing the family, and they have doubled the bounty on this family, if captured alive.

If anyone had suggested to the government officials, that the Bounty Hunter was dead, they would have laughed at you. The only one capable of killing the Bounty Hunter, arrived after he had already disappeared.

They also informed the Dark Council, that there was a danger the family might be in Republic hands.

The Republic Intelligence Service, had never heard about this family, until the Mandalorian Government placed their bounty on them. When two top counter Intelligence agents in the Strategic Information Service (SIS) heard about the 'blue ghost', they placed misinformation on the Holonet luring many Imperial Intelligence agents to their deaths. The program was so successful, that they started crediting the blue ghost with successful operations run deep in the Sith Empire, to help maintain the cover of some of their deep cover agents.

The Dark Council ordered the Sith responsible for capturing the family, to appear before the council. They asked the Sith for an updated report on his progress. The Sith told them that he has not heard from the Mandalorian Bounty Hunter since he headed to Mandalore to capture his prey. They asked the Sith why he did not go to Mandalore himself to supervise their capture. He replied that the Mandalorian seemed fully capable. They told the Sith that the Mandalorian Bounty Hunter has betrayed him, and in turn has betrayed the Sith Empire. "The Mandalorian Government has placed a bounty on his head, wanted dead or alive. The family is probably in the hands of the SIS, divulging how to access the Empire's main computer systems, without being caught. We do not know the weakness in our system that he has exploited, so have no means of stopping the SIS. Because of your failure, we order you to take your own life."

The Sith yelled "No!" and drew his lightsaber, and charged one of the members of the Dark Council. The Dark Council member simply raised his left hand, causing the Sith to freeze in his tracks. He then raised his right hand, seizing the Sith's own hands with the force, causing him to cut his own head off. The Sith screamed a fearful beastly scream, when he realised that he did not control his own hands, which was only silenced when his head fell to the floor, and rolled around.

The Dark Council member commented, that he had a pathetically weak mind. If he is an example of the current crop of Sith Warriors, then the Sith Empire was in worse shape than he imagined.

The next stop, was the crews' favourite stop. Captain Richard warned Andriel, Chitrah, and Krillgan, that there was a notorious Rodian thief on this planet, who has figured out this ship's security system, and will undoubtedly come aboard, to see what he can steal and resell at a large profit.

Chitrah asked the captain what they should do, since he does not want them seen.

"The lights on the ship must be kept dim. Use your martial-arts skills to sneak up behind him, and hit him with something, to render him unconscious."

The captain gave Chitrah a simple communicator, that when activated will send a signal that will activate the communicator that will be with him. That way he will know to return to the ship to deal with the Rodian.

Rodians are a reptilian species from the planet Rodia in the Mid Rim's Tyrius system. They are renowned as hunters throughout the galaxy. They possess multifaceted eyes that can see heat emanating from quarry, hiding in darkness. They have thin tapered snouts that act as filters for their olfactory senses. Their bodies are covered in green scales, and they stand an average of 1.6 metres in height. Their long thin fingers, end in suction cups, which their ancestors used for griping trees and rocky inclines. They have headspines which crest at the top of their skulls. Male Rodians are hairless, whereas the females are capable of growing long flowing tresses. In addition, females are physically distinguished by their mammary glands, much like mammalian humanoids are. Rodians also exude an oily phenomenal excretion, that moisturises their skin, and attracts potential mates. Most non-Rodian find the smell to be repugnant. The excretion also communicates family heritage to other Rodians. This can send another Rodian into a warring frenzy if it recognises the other Rodian as belonging to a feuding clan.

Despite their hunting prowess, Rodians are considered cowards by many other species. Since they are reluctant to take risks that might put them in danger. For this reason Rodian Bounty Hunters rarely take contracts where their quarry needs to be captured alive, and they will often use the biggest most destructive weaponry available, to complete their assignments.

The crew of the "Fenelar Phoenix" considered this planet as their home base of operations, and the brothel they would be going to, as their home.

After exiting the ship, Pula returned with a wooden stick, which he found at the edge of the spaceport. To help Chitrah deal with the Rodian.

Captain Richard has in a romantic relationship with the woman, Madam Cothia, who runs the brothel. This relationship has lasted for years. Madam Cothia is so committed to this relationship that she charges an extremely high price to any man who asks to sleep with her. Most men will settle for the younger, more attractive women in the house. Bikto the engineer also has his favorite, and so does Pula. Fred and Coris, are more into the good food, considered the best on the planet, and their famous selection of alcoholic beverages. A lot of which was brought here by the "Fenelar Phoenix". There are some who believe that Madam Cothia will give Captain Richard a shopping list, just before he leaves the planet, to help keep the brothel's larder fully stocked. There is one woman that works at the brothel, that all the men love, but no-one will sleep with her, besides her husband. She is a Professional Masseuse, and has even trained other women on the staff, because she is always in demand. Even the women who work there, enjoy the touch of her fingers on their body. She will often give free massages to the staff, when she is training a new girl.

Captain Richard entered the brothel. After putting his left hand around Madam Cothia's waist, and giving her a passionate kiss on her lips, he holds up two vials of Kolto in his right hand, and asks if this is enough to cover all the expenses for his crew. Madam Cothia confirmed that they contain pure Kolto, then turns to the house, and announces that all expenses for the crew of the "Fenelar Phoenix" are on the house, than she hands the vials to her lieutenant, who knows that she is now in charge, as all of Madam Cothia's time will be spent with Captain Richard.

That means that all the crew members need to do, is sign for whatever they want, including the women. In Madam Cothia's bedroom, the Captain and the madam make love, like they are still young passionate adults. Their age only betrays them, in that they need to rest longer between their lovemaking, to allow their bodies to catch up to their desires. When they are resting, the Captain reaches into his clothes and pulls out another vial, and hands it to Cothia. "This, my dear, is for you." Cothia takes it and puts it away in a secret compartment. She than asks Richard how he got his hands on so much Kolto? He tells her that the Selkath asked him to take a special shipment, and paid him in Kolto.

"Aren't you worried about the Rodian getting his sticky fingers on it?"

He told her that he wasn't worried. He had altered the security on the ship.

"If the Rodian is smart, he will stay away from my ship, while we are here."

While they were in the middle of the next bout of lovemaking. A beeping noise could be heard emitting from the captain's clothing. Richard swore, "It would have to be now."

He stopped and dressed. Cothia asks him what this was about, "It's my new security measures, notifying me that we have a Rodian to deal with."

As he is dressing, he tells her that she might as well come along, he might need her help. Madam Cothia dressed quickly, not wearing her usual undergarments, and accompanied the Captain back to his ship. The Captain was puzzled to see the ramp up. He thought with the Rodian on board, it would be down. When he lowered the ramp, he saw why the ramp was raised. The Rodian was lying face down on the ramp.

Though the light in the ship was dim, Madam Cothia could see some movement on the ship. Since she knew the entire crew was in the brothel. She suspected that there were others aboard the ship, and grabbed Richard's arm to warn him. He touched her hand to reassure her, and told her, "They are on our side."

As soon as the ramp was low enough for them to step on, they did, and the Captain asked the ship's computer to raise the ramp. When the ramp was fully raised, he authorised the ship's computer to slowly raise the light levels in the ship to 50%. Madam Cothia heard a strange voice say, "I didn't touch him. He suddenly had this look of horror on his face, than he fell over."

She then heard a child's shaky voice. "I'm sorry, I did it. I let him see the image of the Great Mother come up out of the floor, like it was water, like she wanted to eat him. I only did it to frighten him, so that he would not notice father. I did not mean to hurt him."

Captain Richard responded, "It is okay Krillgan, you did nothing wrong. He should not have been on my ship."

When he checked the Rodian, he was dead. As the lighting increased, Madam Cothia noticed a Devaronian woman was holding the child, to both comfort and protect him. She did not know what the man was, only that he was blue, and could see quite well in low lighting. Cothia told Richard that the woman should take the child to her cabin. It was not good for the child to be here longer than he had to. Without being told anything more, the Devaronian woman pointed the child towards the front of the ship, and led him away. After they left, Richard turned the body over. It was clear from the expression on the face, that the Rodian was very frightened by what he saw. He had been frightened to death. Captain Richard mentioned that this was not what he was expecting. He was expecting an unconscious Rodian, not a dead one. The blue man started apologising, but the Captain stopped him. He told him they did nothing wrong, and this is the reason he brought her. Cothia nudged him in the back, as he was still bent over the body.

Richard quickly stood up and apologised to both of them. He then introduced them to each other. He told Cothia that Chitrah is the father of the boy, and he told Chitrah that he trusted this woman with his life. She asked Richard if they were the special shipment the Selkath paid him to transport. He told her they are. He asked her, what did she suggest? She told him that first he needs to introduce her to the woman and child, so that they are not afraid of her. Then they need to remove all clothing from the body. She knows where they can dump it, so that it will never be discovered. The Captain smiled, and patted Chitrah on the back.

"Now you know why I brought her."

They all went to Andriel's cabin. Captain Richard knocked on the door. When Andriel said they could come in, they all entered. Through the introduction, Cothia found out that Andriel is the mother of the child, and Andriel found out that this woman is a very close friend of the Captain. The Captain introduced Krillgan, as being the happiest, and bravest boy he has ever met, and most of the crew, including himself, love him dearly. Krillgan started to feel better, hearing the Captain say that. He told the Captain that he touched him, but nothing happened. Richard told Cothia that the boy has a gift as a healer. There are somethings that he can heal by just touching, and asked her to extend her hand. She did, and Krillgan took her hand. Suddenly she felt a soothing in her secret place. She is not young any more, and sometimes uses lubricants to help, when she is making love. This time she forgot in her excitement of seeing Richard again, and she was starting to feel a little sore. She turned to Richard, and asked him if she could keep him, he would be real handy to have around the house, to help with the cuts and burns, and soreness. The Captain laughed, he told her that he would love to bring him over to her house. He was sure all the girl's would dote all over him. But for their safety, no-one can know that they are here. She smiled, "You know, I can keep a secret." The Captain smiled. Then his expression changed. They have to deal with their guest. Andriel asked if there was anything she could do? Cothia told her that the best thing she could do was to keep mothering this charming little boy. Krillgan smiled at her, and told her that he likes her. Cothia bent over and kissed him on the cheek. "I like you too." They then left Andriel and Krillgan to go deal with the body.

While the men undressed the body, Cothia left the ship, to find something to wrap it in. She found an old dirty tarp that was starting to fall apart, in a small depression, just outside the spaceport. She figured the wind blew it there. It looked like garbage, and anything wrapped in it would also look like garbage. She took it back to the ship, and the three of them wrapped the body in it. Chitrah offered to carry the body, since he was in the best shape of any of them. The Captain reminded him that he could not be seen, if he was, it could greatly complicate matters.

They dimmed the lights on the ship again, before lowering the ramp. Richard and Cothia carried the body to the spaceport's garbage disposal unit. Cothia had told Richard that a Dianoga lived in this disposal unit, and would take care of the body. To be safe, she will arrange that no garbage be placed in it for a cycle. That way, if the Dianoga is not fond of Rodian, it would still consume it to survive.

The Dianoga is a cephalopod that makes its home in areas throughout the galaxy, where refuse collects in moist environments. Almost every large starship in the galaxy has at least one in there refuse collection systems. Dianoga have a single eyestalk that extends upward from their body, like a periscope. Their single red eye, is extremely sensitive to light, and allows them to see clearly in dark environments. The eye is encased in a single, transparent shell that protects the eye from physical, and chemical injuries. Seven tentacles, with suction cups, are used by the Dianoga for mobility, and food gathering. A Dianoga's tentacles are capable of quickly regenerating, if cut off, making the creature difficult to injure or kill. The Dianoga can reach lengths of up to 10 meters. Making it a threat to most humanoid species found in its environment. Along with a huge toothy mouth which it can stretch around an object to swallow it. The stomach contains powerful acids for digesting items that most creatures would find inedible.

When Richard and Cothia returned to the brothel, they both felt compelled to shower. Cothia also sent their clothes out to be laundered, another service they provide at the brothel. They did not feel like continuing where they left off.

Richard told Cothia, that one of the reasons he spoke cryptically about his special shipment, was because he suspected the Rodian had bugged her room, and probably every room in the house. Cothia asked him, how long has he suspected? He said he suspected this for quite a while now, but had no way of proving it. In fact he did not know what to look for, if he was staring at it. Cothia asked if he knew someone who would know about this stuff. He told her that he suspected that Chitrah did, but he can't help them. She asked if Bikto would know. He wasn't sure, and he never had the heart to interfere with him and his girlfriend. Cothia told him that he was a big softy. He asked her if this was why she likes him. She said, "Yes, she knows that he is a good man. Which is why the Selkath asked him to handle this shipment."

She said this to remind Richard, that though the Rodian was dead, his bugs were not, and may be recording them. He told her that he had another problem. He needs to find a sewing machine that does not need electricity. Cothia told him that they have one. The girls were always repairing and adjusting their own outfits. At least half of them are good with a sewing machine, so they have accumulated a fair selection in one of their storage rooms. She was sure she saw an old mechanical sewing machine in there once. Richard asked her how much she was willing to sell it for, and could she get her hands on everything it would need, including the thread and different materials. Cothia told him that if it was still in storage, they could have it. He quietly reminded her, that they were dealing with a Devaronian. She won't accept it without paying for it. Cothia whispered back that they would have to sell it as a package. That way she would believe that she has paid for everything, and gotten a good deal. Richard told her that she was so smart, and kissed her. He was starting to feel frisky again. This time she remembered to reach for the lubricant, made from a blend of natural oils.

The next morning Cothia got up early, as was her normal routine. Richard woke up when he felt her leave the bed. He watched as she put on her special undergarments. She used them to help shape her body. Over this she wore a flesh tone body suit that had creatively been drawn upon. Giving the impression that her nude body was thirty years younger than it was. Over this she wore a tease cloth housecoat lined with frills. The overall affect was that if you only looked at her body, you would think you were looking at a young erotic female. It was harder for her to hide her age on her face. But she did a very good job. If she hadn't taken so long to produce this affect. Richard would have grabbed her, and dragged her back to bed.

When she was satisfied, she activated the communicator in her room, and contacted the maintenance department at the spaceport. She was lucky one of the two men she wanted to talk to, answered. "I have a job for you."

The maintenance man knew that meant the garbage disposal unit would be off line for a cycle. "We will come by for lunch and discuss it."

That meant that they accept, and will need a bottle of liquor, to keep their boss off their backs.

"Anything else?"

"Yes! I may have a bug infestation. Do you know anyone who could help?"

"I'll ask around."

With that they both terminated the call.

After that she contacted her lieutenant, using the in house system. Because the lieutenant did not come to the camera, Cothia assumed, that either she had a late night, or she had someone with her in bed. When she responded, Cothia could hear the sound of sleep in her voice. This was the only part of her job that the lieutenant did not like. Madam was such an early riser. Cothia asked her, who amongst the girls was the best with the sewing machine. When the lieutenant mentioned a name, Cothia responded that she was the one she thought of as well. When the rest of the house is up, could she please send her to her office? The lieutenant said she would. At least the Madam did not expect her to get up right now. She could sleep for another couple of hours before she had to get up to go look for the girl Madam wanted to speak to. She wondered if the Captain tore Madam's outfit when he was taking it off her, when they went to bed. They did something, because they sent a lot of their clothes to laundry last night. She hopes that she has as much energy when she is Madam's age. It would be nice to have a man like the captain around as well. She should start looking more closely at their clients, maybe there is one she might want to settle on.

Cothia asked Richard, if he was ready to go for breakfast? Richard asked, if his clothes were back from laundry yet? Cothia opened her door. There were two packages there. She tossed the captain his clothes, and placed hers on the dresser. She helped Richard dress, because she was hungry, and wanted his company while she ate. During breakfast, Richard commented on how much better this food was, from what they have aboard ship. Cothia perked up and asked Richard what the family was eating. Richard turned red, and did not look at her anymore. He mumbled that they were eating ship food. Cothia raised Richards head, with her hand. You now this is wrong, we have to do something about that.

"But how do we do that, without giving away that they are there."

"Chef regularly prepares meals, for ships that stop by."

"You mean I could have been eating this food on my ship!"

"Yes."

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"I thought you knew. Your first officer thought our price list was too high."

The Captain swore, he mumbled something about having to talk to his first officer. Cothia wanted to laugh, but only smiled. She told Richard that they will not be able to get any food to the ship until dinner time, because it will take time for Chef to prepare everything, and they will have to get some nice fresh fruit, and vegetables for that cute little boy. "He's going to look quite handsome when he grows up. Just like his father." Richard tuned her out, she was in that mode again. She will figure out everything that needs to be done. He could only interfere at this point if he tried to give any input.

"My God she's a beautiful woman. What does she see in me? I can't let this one go."

Later when they were in her office, Richard told her that after this trip is over, he should have enough credits stored up to retire. Cothia looked up from her work. She knew Richard was telling her this for a reason. Her heart started pumping faster.

"What are you going to do when you retire?"

"I want to build a house on the bluff. The one we both like to see the view from. I was kind of hoping you would move in with me."

Cothia got up from her desk, and went and sat on the front of it. "You know that I will not move in with you, without you making an honest women out of me. What will people say?" (Like that has ever bothered her before.)

Richard got down on one knee before her. At that moment the young lady that Madam wanted to speak to, walks through the office door and freezes. She thought that Madam was by herself, and was expecting her. Neither of them noticed she was there.

"Madam Cothia, will you do me the honour of marrying me, and being my wife?"

"Yes Richard Solo, I will be honoured to marry you and be your wife!"

At that point the young lady screams, immobilising the pair, she then runs up to Madam Cothia and hugs her, then she congratulates her.

"Is this the reason you called me? Do you want me to sew you a wedding dress?"

"No it is not the reason I called you. And yes I want you to sew me a wedding dress. But not now, there are too many things that need to be done right now."

Madam had to ask the young lady's help, to help get the Captain to his feet. He had been down on one knee for too long. Because it wasn't a normal position for him, his body was starting to seize up. At this point everyone in the house was starting to converge on Madam's office, because of the scream. She had to get everyone to backup into the small hall then into the dining room. She told Chef and his helpers that they can put their weapons down, in case they accidentally stab someone. Everyone working in the kitchen had grabbed the nearest knife when they heard the scream. Once everyone was in the dining room, Madam Cothia stepped up onto a chair, to address everyone. She told them that a young lady had forgotten the number one rule in the house. Always knock on a closed door before opening it. This made everyone laugh, because it is a very important rule in the house. "She barged into my office, when my good friend Captain Richard, proposed marriage to me." Madam Cothia had motioned the Captain, to help her get down. The ladies started calling out, "Did you say yes."

"Of course I did. Why do you think she screamed?"

Some of the young ladies were so excited, that they also screamed. When Bikto heard that his captain had proposed, he got down on one knee and turned to his girlfriend, took her hand, and asked her to marry him. She started waving her hands and lifted her feet up and down and screamed, "Yes! Yes! Yes!"

When Bikto stood up, she jumped into his arms, and started kissing him on the face, then she started crying on his shoulder. He asked her what was wrong. She told him, "I thought you would never ask."

Pula used this opportunity to propose marriage to his girlfriend, she is also a Gotal. She said yes, and also started crying.

Everyone in the room turned to Fred. Now Fred has been pumping out pheromones, ever since he set foot in the brothel, because there was no little kid to tell him to stop. So he was surrounded by many of the women who work in the brothel. When everyone looked at him, he just smiled and said, "How can I choose?" Then he hugged two of the women closer to him, and kissed them both. They were more than willing to kiss him back. Then everyone turned to look at Coris. He told them all that he was only here for the food. Then he raised his glass towards the Captain and Madam, as a silent toast. Everyone in the room started looking for glasses, they too wanted to toast the Captain and Madam, and their friends, the other couples who just were engaged. Madam Cothia asked everyone to calm down and sit down. She told everyone that they are going to have plenty of time congratulating all the couples that just were engaged. "It's not like we are going to run out tomorrow and get married. There are still things that need to happen before that happens. Because you want to celebrate, and it is almost lunch time. This lunch is on me!"

Everyone cheered. Madame Cothia grabbed the young lady by the arm that had barged into her office, and led her back into the office. The Captain followed right behind. When she was seated, she asked the young lady how comfortable she was in looking after sewing machines. She told the Madam, that you have to know how to maintain it, if you want it to run properly. Madam Cothia told her that she wants her to go into the storage room, where all their old sewing machines are, and pull out the manual one. "The Captain knows a young lady who could really use it. We want to make sure it is working properly, before we can ship it to her. We want to make sure that she has everything she needs to start sewing outfits right away, since she lives on a remote farmstead." The young lady asked if it was okay if she started right after lunch, because she wants to go out and congratulate her friends who were just engaged. Madam Cothia smiled and told her to get out there. After the young lady left, Richard told Cothia that she would have made a great Admiral. Cothia laughed, and told him that it takes more than a captain to run this ship. Richard laughed, then went up and placed a kiss on his fiancé's lips.

Cothia than went into the kitchen. She told Chef that the spaceport had called, asking if they could fill a food order for a ship? Two adults and a one child for a month. They also need to give them fresh fruits and vegetables for the child. Chef told her he would get right on it, right after lunch. He asked her, when it needs to be ready by? She told him that they should look at filling a partial order by dinner time. Then she asked him how long it would take him to fill the order. He said that if they only need to do a partial order for today, he can get the balance of the order done by dinner time tomorrow. He will send one of his staff to the market after lunch, so that the fresh fruits and vegetables can be delivered today. Madam Cothia was satisfied with the answer. She than told Chef that she would be taking her lunch in the dining room with the captain. Normally she eats her lunch in her office, so that she can keep working on her paperwork. Before she left, Chef called her. When she turned to look back, Chef told her congratulations. The rest of the kitchen staff banged together whatever utensils they had in their hands at the moment, and said, "Here, here!" Madam Cothia felt warm in her heart, when she took the Captains arm as they walked into the dining room.

Shortly after they were seated, the maintenance workers from the spaceport show up. They asked the Madam what was going on, everyone seems so festive. Madam Cothia told them that some of the couples just announced their engagement. The maintenance workers asked her if they might know any of the people that are engaged. Madam told them that they know at least one. Then she told them that the Captain proposed to her that morning. They both tried grabbing her hand to shake it. She told them that they can do better than that, and stood up, so that they could each give her a hug. She then told them to find a seat, because lunch was on her. They quickly looked around to find a couple of vacant seats. Madam Cothia, signalled her lieutenant to come to her. When she came over she congratulated the Madam and the Captain on being engaged. Madam told her not to be so formal, both she and the Captain stood up so that she could hug them. The lieutenant almost cried, Madam has never been this open with her before. Madam than told her to go to their liquor storage locker, and retrieve a bottle, something good, but none of the expensive stuff, and to give it to one of the two maintenance men sitting over at that table. It was easy to spot the only two men wearing coveralls. When the lieutenant left to retrieve a bottle, she hoped that this meant that Madam would start training her in her other business ventures.

If Madam truly gets married, and leaves the brothel, than she is next in line, to become the new Madam, and she would like to see all of Madam's business ventures continue. It helps to keep the leeches away. After they finished their lunch, with bottle in hand, the two maintenance workers came back and told Madam, that they had arranged for two tech guys, from the spaceport, to come by and check out her bug problem, this afternoon. After they left, Richard asked her about the bottle? Cothia told him that their boss was a bit of a lush. When people start complaining about the waste disposal unit not working, as it will start smelling during the heat of the day. They lock themselves in their bosses' office, and share a few drinks. It makes the days more bearable, until they can get the system operational again.

When the two technicians came by, one of them told her that they were there about her bug infestation. The other one could not keep a straight face, and started laughing. Which disappointed his buddy, because he had been practising his line. Madam Cothia asked them to come with her. She asked them if it was possible to determine where the bugs would be transmitting their signal. They told her that it would depend on the quality of the bug. With cheap bugs it would be no problem, with high quality bugs it would take better equipment than what they have. The Captain told them that it would probably be the cheapest quality they have on the market.

They started testing in Madam's bedroom. Where they found two audio bugs, and one video bug. The techs found it kind of strange that the video bug was placed where it could not see the bed, it could only see the area where Madam dresses. They left the bugs where they were for now, they went from room to room, to find more. Every bedroom had an audio bug. Two of the bedrooms also had video bugs. These bugs had clear, unobstructed views of the beds. They found a couple audio bugs in the dining room. One was were Fred had established his nest for his harem. There were no bugs in any of the storage areas. There were no bugs in Madam's office, which surprised the Captain, and there were no bugs in the kitchen. Madam told the Captain that it made sense that there were no bugs in her office. She has always kept the office locked when she was not in there, and anyone coming or going from the dining room to the kitchen could see the door to her office. The Rodian would not have been allowed in the kitchen, as there was always someone working in the kitchen. After they located all the bugs, the techs were able to confirm that they were all transmitting in the same direction. The video bugs can only transmit a short distance. After they told Madam all the technical parameters. They started removing all the bugs. The techs wanted to destroy them, but Madam asked them not to. Instead they placed them all in a thick, sealed, metal container, which cut off their ability to transmit.

After a final sweep of the building, the technicians returned to the spaceport. Madam had called up a map of the area. She superimposed the distance and direction the video signals could be sent. There were a few private residences, and one old warehouse. They checked the ownership of the warehouse, and found that it had been abandoned a few years back, and had been seized by the local authorities for back taxes. Madam and the Captain both agreed that they need to search the warehouse first, before checking any of the residences.

Madam called the local authorities and told them she was interested in purchasing the old abandoned warehouse from them, and asked if they could send over a copy of the access card, so that they could view it. They told her that they would send it over right away. After ending the call, Cothia told Richard, that now they had permission to be on that property.

As they were making preparations, to check for the location where the Rodian was transmitting his signals to. A small group of mercenaries came into the brothel. Their contract had expired, and the boss had stayed behind to try and arrange a new one. The small group specialised in protecting female clients, since they had a couple of female members in their troupe. They normally came here whenever they had a brake, because of the food, and the Masseuse. When Madam came out of her office, she greeted them and told them she had a small job for them. They need to search a warehouse, but there might be booby-traps. Are they interested? They asked her, what was she offering? She told them that she would buy them dinner, and the ale this evening would be on her. They knew it had to be a very short job, since she was offering so little. But she was always true to her word, and their might not be any real danger, so they accepted. By the time they suited up in full battle gear, the access card to the warehouse had arrived. The Captain asked Coris if he wanted to come along. They all piled aboard the skiff Madam kept out back, and Madam told the droid driver where to take them. She handed the access card to one of the mercs, and let them go first. They sniffed the door with their sniffer. No explosives. They cautiously opened the door to the warehouse. The automatic lighting system was working, and all the lights came on. One of the mercs swore, now it was going to be harder to find any infrared triggers. The Captain, Madam, and Coris, only entered an area if the mercs said it was safe. In fifteen minutes of searching, they only found one booby-trap. When they dismantled it, one of the mercs commented that it was like it was set by a child, or someone with sticky fingers. The Captain asked him about the sticky fingers, the merc told him that you have to be very careful with booby-traps especially the more sophisticated ones. If part of the trigger sticks to your finger when setting it, BOOM, you're the one with little pieces of meat flying everywhere.

Madam thanked the mercenaries for their help, and asked them to send the skiff back. When they were leaving, one of the mercenaries mentioned to his buddies that he was glad he did not ask more for this job, he's almost embarrassed to take what she offered. Another mercenary said that the solution was clear, he should not drink tonight, and they all laughed. Madam and Captain were shocked by all the sealed crates that were in the warehouse, many of them still had their spaceport markings, showing which storage section they were stolen from. Coris called them to the office. He told them they are not going to like what he found. He found a box full of memory chips, addressed to a business in Hutt Space. He had put one of the chips in the playback device. When they activated it, they saw one of their girls in one of the bedrooms that had video bugs. The Rodian had matched the audio and the video of her pleasing a client. Coris mentioned that just one of these chips, if edited, which is what it looks like, could hold at least ten days' worth of this stuff. It looked like the box contained about a years' worth of edited recordings from the two bedrooms. The Captain asked Cothia, "How long, do you think, he has been recording this." She said she did not know, but she had a bad feeling about this. They checked each memory chip quickly, but found none with Madam on it. The Rodian had quite a setup for recording and editing the data. Captain Richard was sure, that this has been how he knew what to look for on his ship, whenever they would stop by. Coris opened a cupboard door and explained, "Oh My!" Both the Captain and Madam, turned to see what he was looking at. The cupboard was full of memory chips, neatly arranged and dated. They were looking at more than 3 years' worth of recordings. The captain selected one and placed it in the playback device, it was of Madam changing, he had it go to another section on the chip, it was the same thing. He checked another section, it was the same thing. He pulled it out and tried another chip, it was the same. After randomly checking a few more chips, they concluded that this was his collection of the video signal sent from Madam's room. It was the unedited recording, because there was no audio slaved to it. They went through every cupboard to see what else they could find. Unless he had off site storage, it looked like he got rid of, or reused, the unedited recordings from the other two bedrooms. When they checked the room next to the office. It looked like a messy, one room apartment. It looked like he was living here. They doubted he had storage somewhere else, with all the room he had here. The Captain pocketed two of the edited memory chips. One from each bedroom. He was hoping Chitrah would be able to do what he wanted him to do. They were all in a little bit of shock from what they had discovered. Cothia seemed to recover the quickest. She asked Richard if it would be okay for them to have their wedding and reception here. Richard just looked at her. She told the Captain that by law, if she purchased the warehouse, than everything in it is hers as well. She would let the spaceport guys haul away everything that had their markings. But everything else must be gone through very carefully, in case he had other bad surprises for them. The Captain finally clued into what she was saying. Having the wedding here was a good excuse to buy the place, then she could take her time going through this place with a couple of trusted girls, say the ones that were in the videos. To make sure they got everything. The Captain told her to do it. Coris didn't say anything, because he wasn't sure what they wanted to do. If they asked him, he would tell them to burn it to the ground, and not worry about trying to find anything else.

They went back to the brothel before dinner time. The young lady was waiting for Madam. She told her that there was nothing missing from the sewing machine, it works perfectly, and is crated up ready to be shipped. She took one of the farm girls with her to the market, and they bought everything that they thought a farm girl would want, to start sewing for her family. The young ladies divided themselves up at the brothel as being either farm girls or city girls. It usually showed up, in what type of music they would listen to, when they were taking a break. She handed Madam the bill from all the purchases. Her lieutenant had already reimbursed her. Madam asked her if she could talk some of the mercenaries into helping her get it all loaded on the skiff. She said it would be easy, and left. As she was going to her office, Chef spotted her and told her that everything was ready for today, and today's dinner is still hot. She asked Richard and Coris to load it on the skiff as well. It looks like they are going to his ship before dinner. As they were going to the spaceport. Coris asked them who this food was for. Today's dinner smells amazing. Captain Richard told him that it was for their passengers. Coris asked Madam if they normally prepare food for ships. Madam told him that they do it for anyone who asks for it, and pays for it. Coris asked the Captain, if Fred knows about this.

"Apparently he thinks it is too expensive."

Coris told him that he was going to talk with Pula and Bikto, when they get back to the brothel. The Captain laughed, he could smell a munity brewing, and this time he was on their side.

They dropped Coris off, to grab a couple of porter droids, and meet up with them at the ship. At the ship, they told Andriel, Chitrah, and Krillgan, that they hope they have not yet prepared anything for dinner, because they have some hot food for them. The family all commented on how nice it smelt. The Captain pointed out the food packets that were also prepared for them, labeled breakfast, lunch or dinner, and also labeled child or adult. He told them that it was prepared by the same cook, who cooked tonight's dinner. Tomorrow they would bring by some more. They had ordered a whole month's worth for them. Chitrah helped the Captain carry it into the crew's lounge, and helped him put it all away, except the hot stuff. Andriel carried the bag of fresh fruits and vegetables. Krillgan's mouth was all blue, from a handful of berries he had grabbed when he thought his mother was not looking. Andriel had winked at Cothia to distract her, while the bag was still in Krillgan's reach. They both laughed about this, as they walked to the lounge, to wait for Coris and the droids. Andriel told Krillgan that he can't have any more berries, until he finishes his dinner. When Coris showed up they had the droids carry the crates into the workout room, and open them. The Captain asked Andriel, if this was what she wanted? Andriel was overjoyed to see a sewing machine, until she noticed that it was not powered. She remembered telling the Captain, that she would be taking the sewing machine with her, and the Captain saying it would be hard to find her a sewing machine. He's probably going to stick them in an outpost in the middle of nowhere. She was starting to feel a little apprehensive.

Andriel could tell that someone recently serviced this machine. It was not a commercial machine, like the one on Eriadu, but it was a well-built machine. With regular maintenance, this machine could still last for generations. When she looked through the other crate, she could tell that this was packed by someone who knew how to sew. Andriel asked the Captain how much? The Captain looked at Cothia. Cothia had taken a quick peek at the bill when Andriel was looking at everything that was coming with the machine, and rounded the number up. That is what she quoted Andriel. Andriel looked everything over again. She figured that she was getting the machine for nothing, it was probably taking up room in storage, and she was paying full price for everything else. It meant that she would be able to start sewing clothes right away for Krillgan, and he really needed it. She decided not to argue the price, sewing new clothes for Krillgan was more important. She said that she would take it. Cothia was surprised, she expected more haggling from a Devaronian. Then she looked at Krillgan. Even though the clothes are good quality, his pants were too short, his shirt and light jacket were too short, if he bent over to touch his toes, he would probably burst a seam somewhere. "If I was his mother, I would want him to have some new clothes, right now. No wonder she did not haggle." She asked Andriel what sort of sewing experience she has. Chitrah spoke up, and told her, that his wife is a Master Seamstress and Dress Designer. She has designed for royalty, and nobles have been wowed by her designs. Chitrah was obviously proud of his wife, and her ability.

Cothia asked Andriel, if she had copies of any of her designs? She happens to be in the market for a wedding dress. Captain Richard cleared his throat.

"Excuse me, but we have something more urgent to discuss!"

Cothia whispered to Andriel, "Wedding jitters already."

Andriel had to supress a laugh, and coughed instead. At least she knew who the groom was. Captain Richard told them that they just found out that the Rodian had filmed a couple of Cothia's girls in their bedrooms, when they had some male friends over, and they believe that he sold copies of it to the Hutts for one of their porn sites.

"If the parents of one of these girls happened to see their daughter on one of these sites, they will be disinherited, even though the parents rely on the money these girls send them. To supplement their farm income. I have here copies of the latest videos that the Rodian was going to sell the Hutts. Chitrah, Bikto says that you are an excellent computer technician, one of the best he has encountered. Can you use these to find out if the Hutts are indeed broadcasting them? And is there anything that can be done to stop it, if they are?" Richard handed the memory chips to Chitrah, but Andriel grabbed them.

"My husband will not look at those."

"But how is he going to be able to help us?"

"I didn't say he would not help. I just said he would not look."

Andriel was wondering what sort of house this woman ran, where girls were doing this sort of thing right under her nose. Chitrah told them that his wife was right. He confirmed that the videos were only recorded in the two rooms. The Captain said they were. Chitrah told them that his wife can scan the videos, to see if she can find an image of each room, without anyone in it. He can then scan the images of the empty rooms into his computer. So the computer can use them as references, to find any sites where the rooms appear. He can limit the search to only Hutt sites, since they have a unique starting address. The Captain and Cothia were satisfied that Chitrah could and would help them. Richard mentioned that it was time to get back to her house. Cothia asked that they head back without her, she needs to talk with Andriel. The Captain assumed that she wanted to talk to her about the wedding, and wedding dresses. He let her worry about it. He just wanted to see the end result. Coris went back with him. Krillgan had started teasing him with his dinner when he heard his stomach growl.

Cothia asked Andriel if she could talk with her alone, in her cabin. Chitrah nodded at her, he and Krillgan can keep themselves busy. When they were in Andriel's room, Cothia told her that she is a Madam, and she runs a brothel. She does not ask why the girls come to her. But lets them share it if they feel they must. All her girls are clean. None of them are spice addicts, or death stick addicts, or addicts of any kind, except sex addicts. When a girl comes to her, and lives under her roof, she feels obligated to protect them, and she has let them down.

Now some people come to her house for other reasons, besides taking one of her girls to bed. She has one of the best Chef's in this sector. That is why Coris always likes to come back. She has never seen him with any of her girls, though some have tried to get him into bed. Fred loves being surrounded by girls, and the way they dote on him. But he also has never taken any of the girls to bed. "Some mercenaries have come back today, because I have the best Masseuse in this section of space." Some will use the girls, most want the tension massaged out of their bodies, followed by a night of drinking. "I know that you are a good woman, and you have a good family. Please don't think ill of me!"

Andriel looked at Cothia. "I don't know why you made the choices you did. I can tell that the Captain loves you, and you love him. I can tell that you have a mother's heart when it comes to your girls. Don't ask me to bless you, I can't. But I can help my husband help you."

Cothia smiled, "That's all I want from you. Since you are not my enemy, can you be my friend?"

Andriel smiled, and took her hand, "I can be that."

Cothia stuck around while Andriel and Chitrah setup the sewing machine where she wanted it. Bikto would have to install some better lighting. Andriel took her back to her cabin, with Krillgan following, so that she could show her all her outfits, which are her designs. She then showed her the designs she had in her computer. Cothia was amazed by all that she saw. She told Andriel that she would be happy if she could design her a dress, any dress, it did not have to be a wedding dress. Andriel looked at her body, her head kept telling her that something is not right. She asked Krillgan if he could go play with his blocks, she needs to be alone with Aunt Cothia again. After Krillgan left Andriel told Cothia that she needs to see her real body, if she is going to design her a dress. Cothia smiled, and complemented Andriel. She was used to working with people who see what they want to see, and not take the time to see the real you. She took of the clothes she put on to go to the warehouse. Andriel was surprised to see the naked body of a much younger woman underneath. It was only as she looked carefully that she could see it was a body suit. It must have cost a fortune to have it made. After she removed the body suit, Andriel asked her to stop, she wanted to examine her custom made undergarments. Cothia asked her why? Andriel told her that she might be able to incorporate something similar into a dress design. This made Cothia feel goosebumps. After Andriel was sure she had an idea about how it all worked, she let Cothia continue. After she removed everything, Andriel told her that she has a very nice body. Cothia told her that no-one wants to see an old woman's body when they go to the brothel.

Andriel told her that she believed the Captain enjoyed seeing it.

Cothia smiled, "Yes he does!"

Andriel took her measurements, than helped her get back into her clothing. Cothia was surprised at how quickly she was dressed with Andriel's help. Cothia told Andriel that she wished that she could come work for her. She could use someone like her at the house. "Don't worry, I would never ask you to go with a client. I just think that you would be a better mother to my girls, than I could ever be." Andriel thanked her for the compliment. When they went back out to the lounge. Chitrah told her that the program was ready, she just needed to input the images of the empty rooms, and then they can leave the computer to run on its own. Cothia bid them good night, as Andriel went back to her room to find the images, and follow Chitrah's instructions, to input them into his computer.


	2. Chapter 2

©2016

Apparently word about her engagement is spreading. When she contacted the authorities about purchasing the warehouse, they told her that people were contacting them all the time, to see if there was a wedding chapel on the planet. She laughed and told the official, that if this was his way of trying to get her to pay more for the warehouse, it won't work. She was in fact, able to purchase it for much less than she first anticipated. She contacted the two maintenance workers from the spaceport. They agreed to meet her at the warehouse, later that morning. First she has to do something she has been dreading, ever since Richard suggested that her house might be bugged. She had one of the kitchen staff go wake the two girls up that were filmed in the videos. They have a right to know what has happened. She suspects that they will volunteer to examine everything in the warehouse.

At the warehouse, Madam told the two maintenance workers, that in looking for a place for her upcoming wedding and reception, they appear to have stumbled across the Rodian's lair. The maintenance workers jaws dropped, when they saw all the crates with the spaceport markings still on them. They told Madam, that they will not be able to arrange to have the crates removed right away. First they need to write down all the details they find on each crate. Some of them were covered by insurance, and the customers paid out. They will initially remove only the ones that were not insured. Then they will have to figure out what to do with the rest. Richard was also looking more closely at all the crates, he was sure he recognised one or two of them as being taken from off of his ship. He had sent Coris back to the brothel, to go bring back Fred and Pula. If they can find all their stolen freight, they will need to contact the rightful owners, to see if they still want it delivered. If they do, this will mean that Andriel, Chitrah, and Krillgan, will be living a few more months on the ship.

When the maintenance workers came up to Madam before they left, they asked if the two girls she has going through the stuff in the office, are all right. They look like they have been crying. Madam told them they have been crying, they received some bad news about their families this morning. She was hoping that by bringing them here, and giving them something to do, they will recover faster. She thanked the men for being concerned about her girls.

As soon as the technician from the communications company, finished installing the communicator, the machine became active, it signalled that there was an incoming call. One of the girls answered, and the other was curious and watched over her shoulder. There was a young couple on the line. They asked if this was Cothia's Wedding Chapel. The girl hesitated, but said yes, than she asked how they got a hold of this address, the technician had only just finished installing the communicator. The couple admitted that they did not know the communicator's address. They were talking with a local official this morning, and he told them about this new wedding chapel that was just starting today. "He gave us enough information for us to contact the communications company. They have kept us on hold since this morning, so that they could put us through as soon as the technician finished hooking you up. We wanted to know if we can book your facility for our wedding." The girl told them she doesn't know, they are only just starting to move in, and the renovations haven't even started. She would have to talk with Madam Cothia about them. The couple thought it was cute that the woman running the facility, called herself Madam Cothia. The girl wrote down all their information, including what dates would be good for their wedding. After they disconnected, they were told of another call coming through. It was a young lady who had just gotten engaged, wanting to know what dates were open for booking, so that she could start planning her wedding. She was another one who has been on hold since this morning. They had four calls in a row from people who have been waiting to talk to them, about booking their facilities for their wedding. They were getting enough calls, that the girls were answering, "Cothia's Wedding Chapel, how may we help you." Madam Cothia overheard one call, and after it was over she went into the office, and asked what was going on. They told her that they have been getting steady calls, since the communicator was hooked up, and showed her the list of calls along with all the information the people left. While she was looking at the list another call came through, and the girl took the list back, so that she could add their name and information to it. After the call finished, Madam Cothia pressed the busy button on the communicator, to let anyone calling know that no-one was available to take their call at the moment. She reminded the girls that no decision have been made on whether they would allow any other weddings, once they were done with theirs. The girls pleaded with her to let them run the business, they are getting enough calls, that it must be a viable business. Madam told them she still was not sure. People were getting married before she bought this place, and if they look on the sheet, they almost all want the same date. Would they take a later date, or would they start looking elsewhere. The girls were downcast. Madam Cothia looked at them for a moment.

"This is not about the wedding business is it? You either don't want to, or are afraid, to go back to the brothel."

The girls looked at the floor and nodded their heads.

"I won't make you go back if you don't want to. I told you that when you first agreed to work in the house."

The girls nodded again, looking down.

"You know you can leave anytime you want to."

The girls looked at her with fear in their eyes, and with tears running down their cheeks.

"Please don't make us go. We have nowhere to go, and if our families see those pictures, we will not have families anymore."

Madam hugged them. "Please don't start crying again, we are doing what we can, to try and track down any videos that were taken of you."

Madam then walked over to the cupboard, and opened it. "Look at all the recordings he made of me. I doubt that he was recording you two, as long as he was recording me."

"But it is not the same. We looked at some of your videos this morning, you are by yourself, in all the ones we saw. We are with men, and we are doing things that most women we know, would be embarrassed to do, and now everyone will know."

They both started crying again. She hugged them both, until they stopped crying. She promised them that she would not throw them out, but they had to do something. She believed that their might be an opening for one of them to train as a Masseuse, would they be interested in that. They asked if they would have to have sex with the clients. She told them that their Masseuse only has sex with her clients if she wants to. The only person that she knows of, that has ever had sex with their Masseuse, is her husband. One of the girls said that she heard the Masseuse has to be topless when she works, is that true. Madam told her that what the Masseuse wears or does not wear is up to her. If she is giving topless massages, than Madam says she feels cheated, because she has never given her a massage when she was topless. The girls giggled. They did find it funny when Madam mentioned it like that. They both mentioned that they would like to learn how to be a Masseuse. Madam told them that she did not know when she would be able to start training anyone. In the meantime, Chef is having trouble with his dough kneading machine. He could use their help in the kitchen kneading his dough for him, until the machine is fixed. It would mean that they would have to move out of their current bedrooms, and move into the woman's dorm room for the kitchen staff. The girls both agreed to that arrangement. Madam Cothia told them that they would have to move after dinner this evening. She then asked them to continue with their work, she has to get back to the house. They asked her, if they should continue taking calls? Madam said yes, and reset the busy button.

At the house, Madam met with Chef, and told him that he would have two girls kneading his dough by hand, starting tomorrow morning. So he should cover the machine when he was finished for the day. Madam has done this before, so he just did as she asked. Madam told the Masseuse that she would like to talk with her in her office, when she has a free moment. When she came to her office, Madam told her about the possibility of her having some new girls to train. She asked her, how long should she leave them kneading dough, before she would know that they have the hands for giving good massages? The Masseuse told her that if their hands are still strong after eight days, then they have the hands of a Masseuse. After she left, the only thing Cothia had to think about, was what to do with them, if they didn't survive the eight days. She knew that most girls give up after three or four days, when their hands start to cramp up. She wished now that the Rodian had suffered before he died.

That evening when Captain Richard, and Madam Cothia, dropped off the last of the prepared meals. They were desperate to hear some news from Chitrah. Cothia noticed the new outfit that Krillgan was wearing, and complimented him on it. The beaming Krillgan was more than willing to show it off, and told her that his mother was making him some more. Andriel asked Krillgan if he would be okay playing with his blocks by himself, the adults needed to go into the ship's bridge to talk. Krillgan could sense the nervousness of the adults, especially from Auntie Cothia. He told her that he would be okay.

Chitrah gave them the bad news first. His computer detected at least 70 sites where the images of the rooms were detected. Cothia had to sit down on one of the captain's jumper seats when she heard that. This was worse than she imagined. Chitrah told her it was not as bad as she is imaging. Many of the sites are duplicate sites were they were simply rebroadcasting the same image as a previous site, but at a time delay. That was little comfort to Cothia. More than 70 sites, she can't tell this to her girls. She was afraid that they might try to kill themselves if they found out. Richard put his hand on her shoulder to show her his support, which she really needed.

Chitrah then started telling them the good news. When he was analysing the signals from some of the sites, he noticed that the Hutts had imbedded a malicious signal in each broadcast, so that if anyone tried to copy the images without the proper equipment, and access codes, their recording equipment would be fried. He expected that that was how the Hutts made their money off of these site. He also noticed a countdown timer, so that you could only watch one site for a predetermined amount of time before the signal becomes scrambled. This was good news for Cothia. Chitrah was also able to dig a little deeper into the sites, trying to find their origin, and found that they were all coming from the same computer system. He felt that the computer that he detected could handle more than 120 sites at one time, but that the other sites had not yet worked their way into that part of the computer's memory. Cothia just heard 120 sites, and wanted to cry. She wanted to know if they could contact the Hutts, and maybe try to buy the videos back. Chitrah told her the Hutts would probably sell the original copies of the videos back to them, at a price that would bankrupt most small governments, but only after making multiple copies for safe keeping. The worst thing you could do was contact the Hutts. He told them that they had only one option, if they want to destroy the images. He told them that he suspected that the Hutts did not download the images into their computer, but simply plugged in the memory chips, because that is what these memory chips were designed for. If he could hook up his computer to a more powerful computer, like the spaceport's main computer. He could create a feedback loop within the Hutts' main computer, using their imbedded malicious signal, which would cause it to permanently fry its own memory chips.

"But there will be a cost."

Cothia asked him how much?

"The cost is unknown. The Hutts will be able to trace the source of their damaged computer, to this spaceport's computer. The Hutts are not the type to forgive or forget. They will feel compelled to strike back. They cannot attack the spaceport's computer like I can attack theirs, because the spaceport's computer is not a Holonet site broadcaster, so they will physically have to send someone to try and damage it."

Cothia asked him, if he was talking about them sending mercenaries? Richard stepped in and backed Chitrah. He was sure that the Hutts would try and send a mercenary team to damage the spaceport computer in retaliation. That was how they do business, and why you had to be so careful when dealing with them. Cothia asked him, if he was talking from experience?

Richard grimaced then nodded his head. Cothia could see he had some bad dealings with them. She asked Chitrah how long he would need to access the spaceport's computer. Chitrah thought that he might be able to do what he needs to do in just over an hour, two hours max. Cothia really wanted him to do it. She looked at Richard. Can you think of any reason why he should not do it? Richard looked at her, "Other than the hit and run mercenary attack, and the potential for innocent civilians getting caught in the crossfire, No!" Cothia told Chitrah she would see what she could arrange. She was feeling better about this, the sooner Chitrah could do his thing, the better she and her two girls will feel.

After dinner at the brothel, Madam Cothia asked the two girls to come to her office, after they have finished moving their stuff. When they showed up in her office, she told them what time in the morning, the kitchen staff would be waking them in the morning to get them started on kneading the dough. This was a shock to the two girls, who would normally wake up just before lunch, to have their breakfast. She also told them that there was more bad news, and some good news. She told them that the Captain had asked a computer tech friend of his, to search the net, to see if he could find any videos of them.

"We now know that the Rodian did sell some videos of them, because he was able to find a site that was broadcasting their videos."

Now the girls had no idea how large the Holonet was. To them six broadcasting sites was a lot. So they were devastated to here that one site was broadcasting their video. Cothia could see that they were going to start crying again.

"Don't you want to hear the good news, before you start crying again?"

They both nodded their heads, they were afraid to open their mouths.

She told them that the Captain's friend knows of a way to destroy the site using a powerful computer. "Because he has let me know what he needs, I am doing what I can, to see that he gets what he needs, as soon as possible."

That was good news! The girls were feeling much better. They told her that they were willing to help her anyway they could, they did not have much credits, but they were willing to give her everything they had if it would help. Madam Cothia knew that they did not have much credits. They sent most of what they earned, back to their families, because most of what they needed, day to day, is covered by the house. Madam Cothia told them that if she needs their help in anyway, she would let them know. The girls were glad that the Madam was doing what she could to help them. They knew she was very resourceful, and were sure that she would do what had to be done.

The next morning Madam Cothia was talking to her lieutenant about all the calls, the girls answered at the warehouse, from people that were looking for a place to marry. Because the two girls would be tied up all day, helping in the kitchen, she was thinking of taking one of the other girls from the house, with her to the warehouse. If they continue to receive calls at a steady pace, it might be worthwhile to actually set up a wedding chapel. Her lieutenant recommended one of the younger girls. She said that she has a very nice voice, and would portray a good image over the communicator. Madam agreed with her suggestion, and asked if she could wake her after their meeting. The lieutenant asked if she wanted to assign some new girls to the empty bedrooms. Madam told her not to assign anyone just yet. Let the girls use the bedrooms, the same as the other rooms that are shared. She wants to see how all this is going to play out, before making decisions that they can't back away from. The lieutenant agree, and went to wake up the girl she recommended to Madam. As she headed back to her room for a nap.

At the warehouse, the two maintenance workers from the spaceport suddenly show up, and asked Madam if they could speak with her. Madam was planning on calling them later today, and invite them to the brothel for lunch, to see about arranging access to the spaceport's computer for Chitrah. She did not like that they have shown up unexpectedly, this was usually bad news. She did not want to take them to the office, they might be tempted to borrow some of the memory chips they would see there, and the young girl was there, answering the communicator, she did not want her to overhear them talking business. So she asked them to step outside. They were hoping for someplace more secure, but when they saw the young lady in the office, they understood.

When they were outside, they stood very close to Madam, because they did not want anyone overhearing them. They were standing so close that Madam was getting even more nervous. They told her that they suspected as she does, that this was the Rodian's lair, because he was the prime suspect in all the items stolen from the spaceport. No-one has seen the Rodian, since she contacted them, and nothing new has been stolen from the spaceport since then. They believe that the reason she had the garbage disposal unit break down, was because she was getting rid of the Rodian's body. Madam Cothia became angry, and asked them if they were hitting her up for more credits, for them to keep quiet. The two maintenance men look horrified. They told her that it was just the opposite. If they had known she was getting rid of the Rodian's body, they would not have charged her anything for this breakdown. In fact, they would have paid her out of their own pocket, for the bottle for their boss. Madam felt relieved, she asked them what they were trying to say than. They told her that many of the security people were almost fired, because of the Rodian's theft of freight, while they were working. The computer technicians have been written up a number of times, because the Rodian had broken into secure areas, many times, and they did not know how he did it. "What we are trying to say is that there are a lot of people at the spaceport who will bend over backwards, for no charge, if they knew they were helping the person who made the Rodian go away.

The other thing we wanted to talk to you about, is the spaceport freight still in your warehouse. All these items were insured, and the shippers and receivers were paid off with insurance credits. They were sure that many of the shippers would prefer their product back. With her permission, they will contact the shipper, offering to exchange their freight for the insurance credits. They would split the credits with her, and get the product out of her warehouse at no cost to her." Madam Cothia smiled, she liked the way these boys thought. She told them to go ahead and do it, and she needed their help on something else. She needs to give a computer technician access to the spaceport's main computer. The Rodian has recorded some videos in their house, and sold it to the Hutts. This technician can make it disappear, if he has access to the spaceport's computer. She decided to take a chance on these two men she took them into the office and opened the cupboard with the videos of her. They could all see that they were neatly labelled and covered more than three years. The young lady had just ended a call and was watching them. Madam pulled down one of the chips at random, and plugged it into the machine to play back. They saw her undressing. Madam unplugged the chip and put it back. The young lady was standing there with her mouth open. When Madam saw her, she told her, that she better no dare touch anything in this office, except the communicator, and her note pad. The horrified young lady promised. When they were back outside, the men asked her if that was why the young ladies were crying the other day. Madam said it was, they had just discovered the videos he took of them. The maintenance guys were quite upset. The young ladies were always nice to them whenever they came by for lunch. They knew most of the girls that worked there by name. Madam told them that if their computer guy is successful, than the security people need to expect the Hutts to retaliate. This made their eyes go wide.

"You're talking about guys running around firing blasters, and throwing grenades?" Madam nodded.

They both whistled, they asked her, if she was willing to help the security people? She said of course she would, she has mercenary groups stopping by for "F" and "M" all the time, she was thinking of hiring a group, to give them some back up support, for starport security. They asked her what "F" and "M" stood for. Madam laughed, she told them it stood for "Food" and "Massage", what did they think it stood for? They said they did not know, they did not know what anything they do is called. Than they asked if the massage was really that good.

She told them to go straight home after work, and get their wives.

"While one of you is having dinner with your wife, the other one will get a massage with their wife. Then you can trade places. I am sure that your wives will beg you to bring them back, once they have experienced it for themselves. Because they know that they are going to a brothel. Just tell them that you won it in a contest you entered at work."

The guys thought it was a good idea. Their wives knew that they came by the brothel from time to time for lunch, and they did not like it. They thought that if their wives tasted Chef's cooking for themselves, and their wives experience a great massage for themselves, they might not give them a hard time, the next time they hear that they had lunch there. It would be kind of funny if their wives told their friends that they were going to a brothel for their special night out together.

They told Madam that they would do what they could, to get her guy access to the spaceport's computer. They were sure that the security people would be aboard, especially if they know they are getting backup. When they get back to the spaceport, they are going to call their wives, and tell them about the spa evening they won for tonight.

That evening they did come by with their wives. The girl's complimented the guys on how nice they look when they are not wearing coveralls. They told the wives that they were happy to finally meet the special person their husbands were always telling them about. They look better in person, than in the pictures that their husbands showed them. They hung up their coats for them in their walk-in coat rack, and led them to their table. The Masseuse came to their table, and asked which couple she gets to practise on. They ended up flipping a credit coin, to see who would get the first massage. After the Masseuse led the one couple away. A young lady came to their table to serve them. She told them what Chef was preparing for dinner this evening. The wife asked if they get a menu, the young lady told her that they don't do things in the house that way. She told her what meals the chef usually prepares for which day, he tries to make it like a family atmosphere. She asked her if it was the same way for lunch. The young lady said it was, that way you knew what to expect before you came here. The wife asked her husband if he knew what the chef was preparing for dinner tonight. The husband said he did not know, since he has never had dinner here before, but he can tell her what Chef is preparing for lunch tomorrow if she is interested. She told him it was alright. Their server told them that they are entitled to a complimentary bottle of wine with their meal, if they prefer something else, they can show them a list of what they have. To the couple, wine was a rich person's drink, so they both wanted to try it. She told them what bottle Chef has recommended for this meal, would they like to try that one, or are they interested in something else. They both wanted to try Chef's recommendation.

When the Masseuse led the couple into the room where they were getting their massage, she asked them if they were comfortable undressing in front of one another, or should she pull a curtain between them? The wife laughed, she told her that after seven years of marriage they should be comfortable undressing in front of one another. The Masseuse told them where they could place their clothes. She told them that she wanted them face down on the table, and how to position themselves. She showed them the button they had on each table. When they were ready for her, and her assistant for this evening, they should each press their button. She will not come back in if only one button is pressed unless it is an emergency. If something is wrong they should press the one button repeatedly, and she will come right in.

The couple that were eating their meal first, had finished, and were sipping the wine, when the other couple came back with their faces flushed. They were eager to tell them how wonderful the massage was, while the other couple tried telling them how wonderful the meal was. The Masseuse came out, and told the second couple they were ready for them. Madam came over to the couple that had just finished their massage, and told them that she would be serving them this evening. The husband introduced his wife to her, and told her that she owned this place, and quite often has dealings with the spaceport. Which is why she probably offered this spa package as a prize to the spaceport. He told Madam that the computer technicians at the spaceport were looking forward to meeting her technician tomorrow night at seven. "They wanted to see if he was as good as she said he is. Everyone else is on board with her proposal."

The wife asked Madam Cothia, if she really has that much dealings with the spaceport. She told her that Chef regularly prepares meal packages for ships passing through the system.

"If the ship is looking for cheap food, there are a few places that can look after them, but if they want good tasting food they refer them to us. Most of our clients come here by ship. So if there is a large group coming at one time, they will have the spaceport notify us, so that we can get ready. It is not only extra food that needs to be purchased, but we also need to arrange their accommodations. If we cannot handle the whole group ourselves. There are venues nearby, were they can sleep, but they will always come here to eat together. So we are very dependent upon the spaceport, for their cooperation. We also have a lot of import items that we consume here. Like this wine you are having with your meal, so we want to make sure these items are handled properly, especially if it is something that requires temperature control. So it is in my best interest to maintain very good relationships, with the staff working at the spaceport. Offering free perks, helps that along."

The wife asked, if they could come any time to enjoy these perks?

"If you call ahead to make sure we are not overbooked, yes. I don't think you would enjoy it very much if we had twenty mercenaries here. It would be especially hard to get time for a massage. They keep our Masseuse very busy."

She asked Madam about the girls. Madam told her that it was another service they provide. But no-one is obligated to participate, neither the clients, nor the girls.

She asked, if her husband has ever participated?

She told her that her husband is a good man. Even though some of the younger girls have tried to entice him, he has always said, he has someone special at home.

The wife asked her, if she would really have told her if he had been with some of her girls? Madame told her that she would have, because she is his wife. She believes that the fastest way to destroy a marriage is to keep secrets from the one you are married to.

Now if she was his boss, or his girlfriend, she would only share that information, if he had first given permission for her to do so. This gave the wife something to think about. She told the Madam that she was under the impression that most women in her profession were addicts. Madam told her that she is correct, many of them are forced to do this against their will, because of their addictions. Unfortunately, many clients enjoy that about being with them. They are not with them to enjoy sex, they are with them to humiliate them, and to even try to destroy who they are. So the girls have to be careful, and we try to screen our clients.

The wife found Madam to be an interesting person. She was feeling more comfortable being there, and was more comfortable, with her husband eating his lunch there, from time to time. She did not want her husband eating here all the time, too much exposure to any temptation, can wear anyone down. But she would come back with him, if he asked, even if it was just to check up on him. It will be interesting to talk with her friend about her experience here tonight, when they get together for lunch tomorrow.

The next morning Madam went to the spaceport, after dropping off the young lady to answer the incoming calls. She had placed a simple seal on all the cupboards, so that she would know if anyone tried opening them. She thought that the young lady would be less tempted to examine any memory chips, if she knew that she could not hide it from her. She told Chitrah that they have a go ahead, for this evening at seven. She then asked him about the best way to dispose of the memory chips. He told her that other than frying them in a computer, which has the risk of frying the computer itself, there was no foolproof way of disposing of the memory chips. There was always ways, for a patient person to reconstruct the memory chip to access what was stored on them. The only sure fire way to destroy the chips, was to melt them in an extremely hot furnace. What is simpler and safer was to shoot them into a sun. Cothia asked Richard if he would do that for them. Richard told her that he could get Bikto to make two missiles for their missile batteries. Instead of placing explosives in the heads they can watch him fill the heads with the memory chips, then they could take a trip near to the sun, and fire them at the sun. They can watch the missiles disintegrate, on the virtual display, as they approach the surface of the sun. He told her that he would not need the full crew. He would just need Bikto and Coris, because Coris would have to help Bikto load the missiles in the missile launchers. That way she could share his cabin. The two girls would share Andriel's cabin. Andriel and Krillgan would have to share the top bunk in Chitrah's cabin. It should take no more than half a day to get the ship close enough to the sun to fire the missiles, and half a day to get back.

Cothia asked Andriel, if she would mind? She was sure the girls would feel a sense of closure knowing all the memory chips were destroyed.

Andriel asked Krillgan, if he would agree to share the top bunk with her, for a short trip? Krillgan said, "Only if you promise not to push me out." Andriel started tickling him saying how he was the pushy one, that he might push her out. Cothia told Andriel that if she keeps tickling him, they all mighty have to help her. Krillgan laughingly told her that it was not fair, so Andriel stopped. Instead she gave him a kiss on his cheek.

After dropping Cothia off at the warehouse, the Captain went back to the brothel to talk with Bikto. Bikto borrowed Madam's skiff, to drive around and purchase the supplies they would need, then returned with the Captain to the ship, to start assembling the missiles in his workshop. He suspected that Captain Richard was being optimistic when he said they would only need two. He had been to the warehouse, he only saw some of the memory chips, and he was told there were a lot more. He estimated that from what he saw, they could fill two dummy warheads, so he was thinking they might need six or maybe even eight missiles. He was assembling ten just to be safe. If they didn't need them. He knew where to store them. It would not take him long to put real warheads on them if they were needed. Most pirates do not expect missiles flying at them, when they are attacking your ship.

That evening Andriel made sure Chitrah was well covered when he left the ship. It would be hard for anyone to tell what he was. Krillgan was disappointed that he wasn't allowed to go with his father. Cothia told him that it was his job to keep her and his mother company while his father was away.

"Are you going to be talking about dresses?"

"Yes, is that okay?"

"I wanted to watch my father play Hutt Wars on the big computer. That would be more fun than talking about dresses."

Cothia laughed inside, he must have overheard someone talking about his father attacking the Hutt's computer.

Andriel showed her the dress design she had come up with for her. Andriel had found out that if she manually altered the measurements of her own image, she could force the body to look like the person she was designing the dress for. It made it a lot easier to design outfits for other people, because she was always working with the right dimensions. Cothia was blown away by the design. "Are you saying that this is how it would look like on me, without the special undergarments?" Andriel nodded, she reminded her, that she told her that she has a beautiful body. Cothia really wanted to get married in the dress Andriel had designed. She was also a little embarrassed, that the other ladies did not have access to Andriel. She told Andriel that Bikto and Pula had also proposed to their girlfriends at the brothel. She told her that she would be embarrassed if she was married in this outfit, and her friends were not wearing something equally as nice, when they were married. Richard's rules be damned, she was sending over the other two women tomorrow morning, so that she could come up with something for them. Andriel agreed with her. Then she showed her the other designs she had for her. Some were just alterations to her previous designs, with the right dimensions.

Krillgan liked the idea of more people being allowed to come to the ship, he went up to Cothia, and tugged on her dress. When she turned to him, he asked her, "Aunt Cothia, do you know anyone that is my size that could come and play with me?"

Aunt Cothia told him that she was sorry, she did not know any children. The two women saw that he looked really disappointed as he returned to playing with his blocks. Cothia went and picked him up. She hugged him, than smothered his face with kisses, than hugged him again.

"I wish I was your size, so I could come and play with you all day."

Krillgan wiped her tears away with his hand. "I wish that too, but you don't have to cry. Mother said that someday there will be lots of children for me to play with, and I will have a little brother and a little sister. I am sure that we will have fun playing together."

Cothia gave him a sloppy wet kiss on his cheek, and put him down. Krillgan wiped his cheek with his shirt, and went back to playing with his blocks. Cothia went and sat by Andriel, she saw that she also had tears in her eyes. She took her hand and held it with both of hers. They both sat their watching Krillgan play. After a while Andriel got up and asked Cothia if she would like a cup of tea. Cothia nodded her head as she hugged herself and watched Krillgan play.

In the spaceport control room the two technicians were really enjoying themselves, this was just like the spy stories they both like to read. They could not tell who this stranger was, they could only tell he had blue hands. They were surprised that he did not just use the spaceport computer, but plugged his own computer into it and took control of it that way. They never thought that was possible. They had both salivated earlier, when they saw him open his equipment bag. He was better equipped than they were with their big lab. They could only imagine what he was capable of doing with his computer.

Stories of the blue ghost had not yet reached Republic space. But when they finally heard the stories, they were convinced that that was who was in their spaceport. One of them started mentioning it on one of the chat sites he visited. But his buddy made him stop, and told him that he cannot go back to that site. People get killed for knowing what they know. It was too late, someone had traced his location from the info he had given, to join the site. This was being passed along to the closest field op to that planet. They needed to know what he knew about the blue ghost.

The technicians were surprised that this stranger did not need to actually see the video feed, to do what he was doing. One of the technicians told his buddy that he figured out what he was doing. "You know how we look at video feeds face on. That way we see what they want us to see. He has figured out how to look at it from the side, so that he could see what he wanted to see. No wonder he could see that malicious signal."

Chitrah smiled at his explanation. He was glad they were learning something. When he was ready, Chitrah asked the Captain to ask the technicians to monitor one of the Hutt sites. The technicians tried doing what Chitrah did. As they watched it, the video component disappeared. They went back to see if they could find any video signal. All they found was static. They tried another site, again there was only static. The Captain put his hand on Chitrah's shoulder. He had done it.

On an agricultural world, a farmer was looking at some Hutt sites instead of looking after his farm. His wife was tired of her husband watching those sites, and had started doing his work. They had two children to look after. She may have given up on him, but she could never give up on them. The farmer was very jealous of his neighbour. His oldest daughter had left home. After a hard struggle, she finally found a good paying job, and was helping her family. Her parents could now afford to buy the good, more reliable farming equipment. He had heard him boasting in town that their farm was starting to be profitable, soon he would be able to send his other children away to finish their education. He hated his neighbour and wanted to destroy him. While watching the video stream he thought the young lady performing, looked a lot like his neighbour's daughter. If she wasn't she looked close enough that his neighbour would have a heart attack if he saw it. He would have liked to record it, but had already destroyed his recorder when he tried to record off this site. His neighbour was preparing the field right next to his farm for seeding. He decided to go get his neighbour, and ask him, what does he think of his daughter's performance? He ran out of his house, and flagged down his neighbour, he told him that he had come across a site that had a video with his daughter in it. The sceptical farmer shut off his tractor, and followed his neighbour. He wasn't sure what his daughter did, but he was sure she would tell him if she was acting. If this was her, he was sure his whole family would want to see her. When they came to the farmhouse, the neighbour wondered why he spent so much money on this computer, that won't help them with the farm. When there was so many other things that would make farm life far easier for his wife and kids. The farmer was perplexed, the computer screen was just showing static. He tried getting on to the site again. Only static. He tried accessing another site. Only static. The neighbour asked him, where the video with his daughter in it is? The farmer said he did not know, his computer does not appear to be working. The neighbour asked him what the video was about. The farmer knew his neighbour had a temper, and would kill him if he accused his daughter of being a prostitute, without any proof. He told him that it was about a young couple that had fallen in love. The neighbour said that his daughter was a bit of a romantic, he could see her playing a role like that. The farmer bit his lip, to keep himself from saying any more. He apologised to his neighbour for taking him away from his work. The neighbour told him that it was okay, he had good intentions. The next time he writes his daughter he will ask her if she has been doing any acting. The farmer bit his lip again, and waved goodbye to his neighbour. The farmer went and asked his wife if she had done anything to his computer. She told him that if she did, she would have taken a mallet, and smashed it to little pieces. Since the computer wasn't working, he might as well help his wife with the chores.

When they returned to the ship, Richard grabbed Cothia, and told her he did it. Than he gave her a passionate kiss. Cothia with tears in her eyes, came up to Chitrah and hugged him. Then she kissed him on both his cheeks, and thanked him. Krillgan got up and jumped into his father's arms. "Did you beat the Hutts?"

"Yes I did!"

"I knew you would. You are the best Hutt Wars player I know."

All the adults laughed. Not because Chitrah was the only Hutt Wars player that Krillgan knew. But because what he just accomplished was better than winning a Hutt Wars game. He had given two young ladies back their lives. Andriel asked Chitrah to print off all the designs she had prepared for Auntie Cothia. Richard asked, if he could look at them? Both women said no, then laughed together.

On the way back to the brothel, Cothia told Richard that she was sending Biktor's and Pula's girlfriends to see Andriel, first thing in the morning.

"Her designs are that good."

"They are better than good. She makes me look beautiful, even without the special undergarments."

"But I have always told you, that you look beautiful."

"And so you are supposed to. But she made me look beautiful to myself."

Richard hugged his future wife to himself. He had long ago stopped trying to figure women out.

At the brothel, Madam Cothia asked both girls to come to her office. When they came in to her office. She got up and hugged them. Then she told them he did it. He destroyed the Hutt site. They cried on her shoulders in relief. She held on to them until they were finished, because she was crying herself. After they stopped crying, she told them to sit down. She sat on the front of her desk, while she outlined what the Captain had proposed, for them to be rid of all the memory chips. The girls liked the idea of going on the ship and seeing the chips destroyed as they flew into the sun. They were also excited to meet the man who had helped them without even knowing them. They asked her, how they can thank him? She told them to be nice to his wife, since they would be sleeping in her cabin, and play with his son. She than described his cute son to them. After she finished, the two girls asked her, if the Captain knows that a younger man has stolen her heart? She told them that she thinks he suspects something, but has not shown any signs of jealousy.

After the two girls left, Madam called the sewer to her office. She came in and closed the door and sat down. Madam sat on the chair beside her. She showed her the copies of the designs Andriel had printed for her. When she looked at each design, she said, "This is beautiful." Madam had kept the best design for last. The sewer did not say anything, she looked at Madam with tears in her eyes, "Is this supposed to be your wedding dress?"

Madam nodded her head. The sewer hugged her, "This will look so beautiful on you." Madam asked her if she could sew it. She told Madam that this was more difficult than anything she has ever sewn in her life. But wanted to try it. Madam showed her the order that she wanted her to sew the dresses. The sewer asked Madam, if the designer had suggested it? Madam asked her, what did she mean? She asked, if the designer had suggested the order that she sew the dresses, because each dress is slightly more difficult than the one before it? By the time she came to the wedding dress, she will have the skills of a seamstress. Madam told her that the dresses were designed by a Master Seamstress and Dress Designer. She asked Madam why she didn't just ask her to sew it. The seamstress could do a better job than she ever could. Madam told her that she would not be here to do it, she is just passing through the system. The sewer was disappointed, she would have liked meeting this seamstress. She asked Madam, if it was okay for her to show the designs to the other girls? She said she could, but could not let the Captain see them. Madam could tell that she wanted to ask her something else. She waited until the sewer had the courage to ask. She asked Madam, if she could move the sewing machine into her room? She would be more comfortable with it being there. Madam told her that if she moves the sewing machine into her room, she won't be able to use her room for entertaining clients. The sewer looked down at the floor, and said she knew. She would rather be sewing than entertaining clients. Madam took her hand, so that she would look at her. We do need the room. Would you like to move to the warehouse, with the sewing machine? The sewer's eyes became wide. "Could I? You won't be upset with me?"

"No, of course not!"

"Did you want to stop working with clients altogether, or just while you are sewing?"

"I don't know? I just know that I really want to sew these dresses."

Madam asked her, if there was anything else? She told Madam that they don't have the material here to sew the dresses. Madam guessed what she was really asking. She told her that she did not have the time to go to the market with her, to select the fabric she needs to sew each dress. She has seen what she has sewn for herself and for others. She trusts her good taste, and expects that she will select the right fabric for each design. She will ask her lieutenant to advance her some credits, so that she can buy whatever she thinks she needs. She just needs to make sure her lieutenant gets all the receipts, and any change. The sewer asked her, when she would be able to move into the warehouse? Madam told her that first she will need to take a short trip. Unfortunately, she will not be able to move until after she gets back. She asked, if she could move into the storage room, until she gets back? Madam sighed and told her to move the sewing machine into her room, until they are ready for her to move to the warehouse. After she left, Madam was sure that she had lost her as one of her regular girls. She will need to talk to Andriel, to see if she would recommend a commercial machine for this girl to use. She was now their resident seamstress.

Next she talked to Chef about taking the two girls for a short trip. He told her that if she wants to keep pretending his dough kneader is broken, he will need four girls to replace them. Madam raised her eyebrows at him. Chef explained that their work really was that good, and because of them he has added some items, which means more work. "Next you are going to tell me that you need a new machine, because this one cannot handle the workload."

"I was meaning to talk to you about that."

Madam told him to get out.

Bikto brought his dummy warheads to the warehouse for the girls to fill. Even though they were tired from kneading dough all day. They found the energy to gather all the memory chips in the warehouse, and put them in the warheads. Bikto had brought a metal rod and mallet, so that they could ram as many as they could into each warhead. The girls liked hearing the sound of the memory chips brake, when they hit the metal rod with the mallet. The girls asked Bikto, why they had to load them into the warhead, when they could hear the chips break when they hit the rod with the mallet? He told them that the guy who was able to damage the Hutt computer for them, told them that even though these chips can be damaged, a person who knows what they are doing, can still extract the video data from them. The girls knew that the guy had to be smart, to be able to do what he did, so they better listen to him.

Because the girls liked to hammer on the rod with the mallet. They were able to get every memory chip that they found into six warheads. They told Bikto that they could not find any more chips. Bikto asked if all the cupboards were bare. They said they checked everything in the office. Then they checked everything in the apartment, than they checked everywhere where a scaly rat might try to hide them, and came up with nothing. Bikto informed the captain that they were ready to head to the Fenelar Phoenix. At the Phoenix, Coris helped Bikto carry the missile bodies to the front of the ship. There Bikto attached the dummy warheads that the girls had filled. All three women, whose lives had been damaged by the recordings, supervised the whole procedure. When they were satisfied that the six missiles were properly loaded in the missile launchers, they all went aboard ship. When the girls were introduced to Chitrah, they did not shake his hand, instead they threw their arms around his neck, and kissed him repeatedly. One girl per cheek. After each kiss they said thank you. After about a minute of this, Andriel cleared her throat. When they were introduced to Andriel, they each took one of her hands and apologised to her, telling her how special her husband was. She told them that she thought he was special too. For some reason, both girls blushed. Then they were introduced to Krillgan, they each took a turn, shaking his hand. When the second girl shook his hand, she said, "So you are the young man, who has stolen Madam's heart."

"I did not steal it, she gave it to me, willingly."

This made all the adults laugh.

"Well I willingly give you my heart!"

"As do I!"

Krillgan smiled, this should be a fun trip. The girls were very tired. It had been a long day for them. So Andriel led them to her cabin. Because it was supposed to be a short trip, she had left her clothes hanging in the closet, and her other luggage packed away. She had only taken what she would wear when she went to sleep, and what Krillgan would wear when he went to sleep. Andriel noticed that they had not brought anything with them. She asked them if they needed anything to sleep in, they were close to the same size, so her clothes should fit them. They were embarrassed and told her that they don't sleep with anything on. Andriel wasn't phased. She told them that the Togruta sleep like that. The one girl asked the other girl who the Togruta were. Her friend told her that she believes they are red like Andriel, but have horns and headtails.

"Aren't they called Twi'leks?"

"No! Twi'leks can be most any colour, and have two headtails. Togruta have three."

"And horns."

"Yes Togruta have horns."

"Are they comfortable?"

"Are who comfortable?"

"The Togruta! If I had three headtails, and horns. I don't know if I would be comfortable?"

"Her friend asked her, if she was comfortable with her hair?"

"Why shouldn't I be, I've had hair all my life."

"Well Andriel might think you are uncomfortable, since you have hair, and she doesn't. Just like you think that the Togruta might be uncomfortable, when they have had their horns and headtails all their life."

"But she looks so pretty."

"Who looks pretty?"

"Andriel does, even though she has no hair."

Andriel wanted to laugh, they were just like two children who had been up too long. She told them that they had to be quiet, because she was putting Krillgan to bed now as well. They said okay, and started undressing in front of her. Andriel dimmed the lights, and left the cabin. She went to the crew lounge and told Krillgan that he needs to get ready for bed. He complained, he said that everyone has just got here. She told him that the two young ladies have already gone to bed, and they are much older than he is. He pleaded with his mother. She told him that he needed to change, and then they would see. He did as he was told. Now after all the introductions had been made. Captain Richard had gone to the bridge with Bikto. He had taken the pilot's seat, and Bikto had taken the captain's chair. Captain Richard had told the computer, that this was a silent departure, no notification was necessary. The computer asked him, if he was stealing his own ship? The Captain said no, he just wanted the people who were aboard to feel as comfortable as possible. When they reached orbit, Richard told Bikto which heading to input into the ship's navigational system, then headed to the crew lounge. When he came to the lounge he found Andriel sitting with a sleeping Krillgan on her lap. She asked him when they would be taking off. He told her that they had already reached orbit, and navigational control has been turned over to the ship. With Engineer Bikto, taking the first watch. Andriel told him that she did not feel him lift off. He smiled and told her that that means he has not lost his piloting skills. Chitrah got up and carried Krillgan to the top bunk in his cabin. Andriel got up to make everyone a cup of tea. Coris asked Andriel and Chitrah about their time on Uvena Prime. Chitrah told everyone (because they were all listening) about going to Uvena Prime with some electronic technicians from the Interior Ministry's office on Eriadu, to continue their training as field computer technicians. They were not well received by the locals. He knew that was part of the job. He was fascinated by their computer systems, since it was so different from anything he had encountered before. A lot of their work was being done in research labs, and he started asking the local technicians about their computer systems. Apparently he was asking questions that no one had asked before, because the local technicians started answering him. They started asking questions about his life, and he told them how he was forced by the Sith to marry his wife. (This really caught Cothia's attention.) Then they found out that he had training in self-defence, because his wife was almost raped. "One of them was a member of a martial-arts institute, and he contacted the head instructor, and told him my story. The head instructor wanted to see what I knew, so he asked the technician to invite me to come to the institute with him after work, when he came for his class. I readily agreed, and grabbed some loose clothes to take with me. The instructor introduced me to his class, and asked me to demonstrate what I knew. I showed them as much as I could on my own, than asked him, if someone from his class, would volunteer to help me. He volunteered. Then I proceeded to show him two different techniques for the same thing. I had practiced with some Togruta, and found that they did some things similar, and they did some things different. He was very impressed that I could understand the difference. He told me that my abilities were not yet up to the level of his class, but he would let me sit and watch, because he was sure that I could learn something. After the class he thanked me for my cooperation. He told me that foreigners were usually not as forth coming as I was. He also told me that I was allowed to come back and watch his class, if I wished. I thanked him and told him I would be back. I came back every evening after that with the technician. Even though I was not allowed to participate in his class, I learnt something new every day. When I went back to the residence where I was staying. I tried to practice some of what I learnt before going to bed. The next time I was in Uvena Prime, we were on the run from the Sith because of Krillgan. This time the instructor let me participate in his class because he said my skill level had increased, he even invited my family to live with his family, while we were there."

Cothia wanted to ask him about being forced to marry Andriel, but Richard told her that it was late, everyone was tired. Her question could wait until the morning. She asked Richard if he had heard their story, he told her that he had not, but really wanted to, when he was awake enough to listen. She was pacified, and followed him to bed. Andriel decided to sleep with Chitrah on the bottom bunk, even though the bunk was narrower, than the bed in her cabin. They were both too tired to do more than kiss before falling asleep.

Krillgan woke up in the middle of the night, and found he was sleeping alone. He reached out with the force to see if he could find his mother. He found that she was sleeping with his father on the bottom bunk. He woke his father up by continuously saying "father", until his father woke up. He told his father that he had to go to the bathroom. Chitrah got up and lifted him off the top bunk, and took him by the hand to take him into the crews' washroom. Krillgan had never been in there before, because he always used the washroom in his mother's cabin. After he was finished, he asked for some water. Than they both went back to bed.

The two girls woke up before everyone else, and dressed. They were feeling a little hungry so they checked out the food that was available to eat. They food some meals that were labelled child, breakfast. Since they did not want to eat too much, they both decided this was the right portion size for them. They heated it up, and after they were finished, since no one else was awake, they decided to see what was in Andriel's cabin. When they found all her outfits hanging in the closet, they just had to try them on. They had each tried on every outfit that Andriel had, before anyone else woke up, and they loved them. They hoped that Andriel would let them have one. They spent the rest of the morning before everyone else got up trying to decide which of Andriel's outfit they wanted most. They also found Krillgan's bag of fresh fruit and vegetables, and decided to have some fruit. Breakfast was not as filling as they had hoped. When they heard someone stirring in the crew lounge, they each put on the outfit they wanted most, and went to the crew lounge. It was Chitrah he was preparing his breakfast. They asked him if he could make them some tea. He said he would, without looking at them. When he did turn to hand them their tea. He noticed that there was something familiar about what they were wearing, but could not put his finger on it. Then he noticed they were eating fruit. He asked them, if they had asked anyone's permission, before starting to eat Krillgan's fruit? They were both embarrassed. They did not know they were supposed to. Chitrah sighed, then went and had his breakfast. The girls did not know what to do. They really wanted this man to like them, after helping them so much. After he finished his breakfast, he went and woke Andriel and Krillgan, so that they could get up and have their breakfast. He went to make some tea for both of them. He always cooled Krillgan's tea down before letting him drink it. Andriel came out first. When she saw the two girls. She was a little annoyed because they had tried on some of her outfits without first asking her permission. She asked them, if they liked her outfits? They could tell that she was upset with them. In very small voices, they said that the outfits were lovely, and they really, really love them. Than Andriel noticed they were eating fruit, the protective mother in her came out. She demanded to know, who gave them permission to eat her son's fruit? At the same time Krillgan came out of the meal storage area and told his mother that someone ate two of his breakfasts. He was not a happy child. The two girls got up crying and ran to Andriel's cabin. This woke up everyone else on the ship. Both Cothia and Andriel went to their cabin to talk with them. Cothia asked them, why they were crying? They told her that they really wanted Chitrah to like them because he really helped them without knowing them, and if he liked them, then he would feel even better. But he was upset with them because they ate Krillgan's fruit without asking anyone's permission. They really love all of Andriel's outfits, they are all so lovely, and had each decided to wear the one they loved the most, so that she could see how well it fit them. But Andriel was upset because they did not ask her permission. She was even more upset when she saw that they were eating her son's fruit. "We were hungry when we woke up this morning, but did not want to eat too much, we both thought that the child's breakfast was the right size for us, and we each had one. Now Krillgan is upset with them because we are eating all his food." The girls were really sobbing now. "We have done everything wrong this morning. Chitrah probably hates us for eating all of his son's food, and making his wife and his son upset. He probably wishes he had never helped us." Andriel went up to them and gently put a hand on each girls shoulder. She patiently waited until the girls calmed down enough to notice who was touching them. When they noticed it was her hand on their shoulder, they each took her hand in both of theirs, crying on it, telling her how very, very sorry they were. She told them that she does not hate them, her son does not hate them, and her husband does not hate them. Yes they were upset with them, because they behaved like spoiled little school girls. "Remember that you freely gave your hearts to my son, and he loves you. I love you, and I know that my husband loves you. Please stop crying, and come out and talk to the people you hurt. You are not monsters to them. They just want everything to be right, between us and you." Cothia thanked Andriel, she was sure the girls overreacted, because they have been on an emotional rollercoaster these past few days. The girl's looked quite contrite, when they walked into the crews' lounge. Captain Richard had overheard some of what was said in Andriel's cabin, since the door was ajar. He asked the girls to sit down, and told them that a lot of what they did this morning was really his fault. He did not take the time to explain to them, why this family is on this ship, and why they have never seen them at Auntie Cothia's house. He was about to say Madam Cothia's brothel, than saw Krillgan out of the corner of his eye, and realised it would create some difficult questions for Andriel and Chitrah to answer. He told the two girls that this family is on the run from the Sith. "For them to be seen, is dangerous for them, and it is dangerous for whoever sees them. I have foolishly put your lives at risk, by letting you come aboard this ship, thinking I was helping you. For this I must apologise. I am sorry. This family is very dependent upon me, and my crew, to provide everything they need. In this regard, we have been a little negligent. So the parents are very protective of the nourishment their son receives, not only in his specially prepared meals, but also the fresh fruits and vegetables that he needs, to help him grow strong and healthy." The girls wanted to disappear into their seats, as they realised the hurt they had inflicted on this family. "If I had taken the time to brief you properly, I am sure that you would have behaved quite differently regarding Krillgan's food." They both nodded their heads vigorously, they would have, had they known. "Concerning wearing Andriel's clothes, I cannot make up an excuse for you." The girls both turned red. Andriel spoke up, "I too must apologise. I knew better than to leave the bag of fruits and vegetables in the cabin. Even I will reach in from time to time, to grab a piece of fruit." Chitrah acknowledged that he has as well. Krillgan smiled, he had suspected his parents did, but now he knew for sure.

Madam Cothia asked them what they had to say about the clothes. One of the girls spoke up. "After we ate Krillgan's breakfast, no one else was up yet, and we were bored. We did not want to explore the ship even though it is so much different than any we have been on before, because we were afraid we might touch something, and get into trouble. So we went back to the cabin to snoop around. When we opened the closet, we thought we found a Queen's wardrobe. We remembered that Andriel had said last night that we were all close to the same size. So we thought we had permission to try it on." Andriel laughed, they were stretching it, but you have to give them the benefit of the doubt. "We each took turns trying on every outfit, and we loved them all. We were hoping that we could talk Andriel into letting us each have one. We took a long time trying to decide which one we would ask her for. When we finally decided, we each put or choice on, so that she could see how well they fit us." They then both got down on their knees, and clasped their hands together. "Please! Oh Please! Can we have them?"

"Won't that make the other girls jealous?"

"Oh Yes! Very much so!"

The adults could not help but laugh. Andriel told them how much she charged on Lianna for one of her outfits. She asked Krillgan, what did he think? Even though Krillgan was playing with his blocks, he had been listening very carefully to everything.

"They don't fit right, but they do look nice on them. I think they should pay for them."

Andriel agreed, but told them that credits were useless to her, since she was not allowed to go out shopping. So they would have to do the shopping for her. She told them that she needed sewing supplies. She would give them a list. More fresh fruits and vegetables, since Krillgan was eating a lot more than she expected. Chitrah stared at the floor and did not say anything. Some more of the pre-packaged food, because it is absolutely delicious, and some fabrics, she will give them samples. She told them that she will not have time to do any alterations on the outfits, as it was evident that their mountains were different sizes. The girls said it was alright, they can put some padding in them. They have done it before, than they giggled. They looked at Madam Cothia, because they did not have that much credits. They could only do it, if she was willing to help. Madam sighed, than nodded her head. The two girls squealed, then got up and hugged and kissed Andriel, thanking her, then they ran over to Madam Cothia and did the same. Then the one girl hugged her friend, "I knew you were the better talker. Thank you!"

At that moment Coris walks into the crew's lounge, and tells everyone, that the computer said they reached their destination. Every one rushed for the bridge. Even Krillgan was allowed in. Captain Richard, let Cothia take the captain's chair, and the girls each take the jumper seat on either side. Bikto is at the Engineer's station, surrounded by Chitrah, Krillgan, Coris, and Andriel. The captain is in the pilot's seat. The sun is too bright for them to see what is happening outside the ship, even with the polarized darkening filters in the windows. The captain orders the computer to transform the ship to battle mode. They hear the whir of mechanical equipment moving. Soon they see the ship's armour coming up and covering the glass. Krillgan runs off the bridge, and Chitrah runs after him, asking him where he is going. Krillgan calls back that he wants to see what else is changing on the ship. Chitrah calls back that it is not safe to move in a ship, when it is transforming. Krillgan stops running when he reaches the cargo bays. Chitrah catches up to him. As Krillgan walks toward the back of the ship, he points to the back and tells his father that they have lost the tail section. There is the large area beyond the cargo bays, then there is nothing. He asks his father if they can breathe in space, because their does not appear to be anything between them and space. Chitrah tells him that there is a force field keeping the air in the ship, because space is a vacuum, where no one can breathe. Krillgan asks him, if he knows what happened to the tail of the ship? Chitrah tells him that the tail has swung down beneath them. The second gun turret that used to be on top of this ship, is now just below this opening, to protect it. The third gun turret that used to be far back under the tail, is now in a good position to protect the under part of the ship. Krillgan asks him, if he had been in the tail would he still be able to breath? Chitrah tells him that the air that is in the tail is still trapped there, when it transforms into battle mode. He then tells Krillgan that they should get back to the bridge, or they would miss the missile launch. Krillgan races back with his father right behind him.

Shortly after Krillgan raced off the bridge, the ship's computer tells the Captain that the ship is now in battle mode. Both missile launchers are now active. Captain Richard tells Cothia, that it is now safe to launch the missiles. The three women press a button together, and they see bursts of laser fire shooting out from either side of the bridge, streaming towards the sun in the virtual display. Coris laughs and tells the ladies that he thinks they just killed the sun. Captain Richard tells them that they just fired the turbo lasers, they did not harm anything. Cothia asks him, which is the missile launch button? Richard tells her that it is the only double button, because there are two missile launchers. One of Cothia's girls point to a button, "I think it is this one, it has "missiles" spelt underneath it." Richard tells them, "That's the one." Cothia positions her finger over the button, "Ready Girls?" The three women, press the button together. Krillgan and Chitrah arrive back at the bridge, just in time to see six missiles streak away from the ship, like starfighters in flying formation, on the virtual display. They watch as one by one the missiles disappear, disintegrated by the heat of the sun. When the last missile disappeared, the people on the bridge could hear a "whoosh" sound coming from the three women. They had been holding their breath. The three women got up to have a group hug. They had tears in their eyes. This dreadful event in their lives is over. They each went around to everyone on the bridge, thanking each of them. When they thanked Krillgan, he asked them why they were thanking him, he did not do anything. The one girl said that if he had not been born, his parents would not have been here to help them, and they would be dead. That is when both girls confessed that they were seriously considering suicide, knowing how hurt their parents would feel, if they discovered what they really did for a living. The only thing that stopped them was when Madam Cothia told them, that Captain Richard knows a computer technician that claims he can shut down the Hutt's site. The other girl said that she wishes the Rodian was dead. Krillgan was about to say something, when he saw Auntie Cothia holding a finger to her lips. Auntie Cothia then told the girls, "The spaceport maintenance workers, are convinced that the Rodian is dead. There is no ship that has left our planet in the past month that would be willing to take him on board. He was last seen just before the "Fenelar Phoenix" had arrived. We have found his lair, and he was not there to try and defend it. So they believed that someone must have killed him."

"Well that someone is a big hero to us, and we wish there was some way we could thank them."

Chitrah had placed a firm hand on Krillgan's shoulder. Krillgan knew that it meant he should only listen, and let the adults speak. Chitrah told the girls that he was sure that whoever killed him, already knew that they had done something good for them, and done the community a big favour. Andriel suggested that they all go eat lunch. Captain Richard told the computer to transform the ship back to transport mode. They heard the whirring of the mechanical systems again, and the bridge was getting brighter and brighter, as the armour covering the windows slid back down to cover the missile launchers. As they walked to the crew lounge, Krillgan now understood that his killing the Rodian, was a good thing. It was okay to kill a bad person, to help a good person. Just like the Great Mother, helped his family by killing the bad bounty hunter. He knew he had a lot to learn about good people and bad people. He knew that the reason his parents had taken him on this journey, was to keep him from the Sith, because they wanted to make him into a bad person. Which means that a good person can become a bad person. Does that mean a bad person can become a good person? If they can, then he should not kill them. He had a lot of things to learn about, so he does not kill the wrong people, and become a bad person himself. At lunch Krillgan asked his father what the two women did for a living. Chitrah told him that they work in the entertainment business. "Is that a bad business to work in, because the ladies were afraid that their parents might find out?"

"There are many sides to entertainment. What someone might consider bad, someone else would consider good."

Krillgan wanted to ask him more, but was not sure what to ask him. Finally he asked, "Will I understand when I am older?"

Chitrah hugged him, "I hope so, son." The girls were embarrassed because they had put Chitrah in an awkward situation, but remained very quiet. Cothia spoke up, "Chitrah, you said last night, that the Sith forced you and Andriel to marry, can you tell us your story?" This was news to the two girls, they perked right up, because this was something they both wanted to hear. Chitrah looked at Andriel. Andriel told him to start. They spent the rest of the trip back, sharing their story. Everyone was spell bound, even Krillgan. He had only heard parts of it before. He did not know that at one time his mother hated his father, until now. It is a good thing they have a very good ship's computer, because no one was on watch on the bridge, for the whole trip back. When the ship informed them that they had entered orbit. Captain Richard asked Cothia to strap herself into the captain's chair, and her girls can be strapped into the jump seats on either side of her. He told the computer to tell everyone to prepare for landing. "Crew to your stations, passengers to the crew lounge. The girls had started to turn to go back to the lounge, when Madam grabbed their arms, and told them they were crew now. Now they knew why they were going to the bridge. Captain Richard had strapped himself into the pilot's seat. Bikto was strapped in at the Engineer's Station. Coris was in the Crew Lounge, strapped in with the family. As they were entering the atmosphere, one of the girls said it was a shame that they could not tell anyone, it was such an interesting story.

"On the contrary, I had not told Bikto and Pula's girlfriends about them, when I sent them to see Andriel, to see if she could design a wedding dress for each of them, they need to be warned, not to tell anyone about them, so you can share their story with them, as soon as we get back. But with no one else. When they departed the ship, the two girls were wearing Andriel's outfits, and had their own clothes in what used to be the fruit and vegetable bag.

As they were riding back to the brothel, the one girl asked Madam if she could have her old room back, she was ready to go back to work. Then the other girl asked her the same thing. She told them that their rooms were probably being used tonight, and Chef might need them again, in the morning. So it might be best if they sleep in the dorm tonight, after talking with Bikto and Pula's girlfriends. She would see what can be done in the morning. Both girls realised that they were probably not going to get any sleep tonight. By the time they finish talking with their friends, Chef would be sending one of his staff to go look for them.

At the brothel, her lieutenant told her that the calls to Cothia's Wedding Chapel, were still coming in steady. There were only two call backs, asking if any decision had been made yet. Back in her office she asked Richard for his opinion, on whether she should open a wedding chapel, or not. He told her she was the business woman, from the number of calls they were getting, it might make a profit. She also had to consider the number of headaches, a business like this could cause her. It would also provide a cover for her girls, if a family member suddenly showed up, wanting to see where she worked. That clinched it for Madam. It was always an awkward situation, when family wanted to visit. It would also keep her new seamstress busy and happy. She told Richard that they need to set a firm date for their own wedding, because she was not going to let the public use it, until after her own wedding. Richard told her he had to talk with Fred first, to see how many of his clients, want the stolen freight back that they were able to recover. Than he could give her a firm date, when to expect him to return. She asked him, what was he planning on wearing to their wedding? He told her that he wanted to dust off his old dress uniform, from when he was a Captain in the last Mandalorian War. It should still fit him, if not there is a tailor in town that could do alterations. She asked him if he still keeps in touch with his Commodore, from the war. Maybe he should invite him. He told her that he lives on Yitabo in Sith Space. He wonders if Chitrah and Andriel met him, when they were there. He is very resourceful. After he confirms a date with her, he will send him a message through their old network. If he wants to come, he will be there.

The next morning Madam Cothia, arranged with her lieutenant for the two girls to get their bedrooms back that day. She also wanted to move their new seamstress to the warehouse this afternoon, after she has gone there herself, to see what type of condition it was in, now that it was almost empty. The lieutenant asked her what sort of pep talk she gave her, because the girls in the next room, hear the whirring of the sewing machine, day and night. Madam asked if any of the girls complained. She said no one complained, but some of the girls are now homesick. Madam laughed and told her that they will need to get someone to check out the soundproofing between the rooms.

Captain Richard met with Fred, his First Officer. Now Fred was not a happy person. He was not happy that the Captain made him work, while he took a cruise around the system with his girlfriend. He was unhappy from a few days before, when Coris found out that they could get meals from the brothel for the ship. Now he, Bikto, and Pula, come up to him on a regular basis, asking him to purchase prepared meals for them from the brothel. Every time one of them came up to him, it upset the emotional ambiance he had set up with his harem of girls. Forcing him to work harder to keep their focus on him, and not on his distracting crew mates. Now because he had to do what the Captain asked him, he has lost his harem, and doesn't know if any of them will come back. It was also a very frustrating day trying to get a hold of the customers, whose stolen freight was recovered. Whenever he went into the warehouse office, the communicator was always being used. He had to wait on average of fifteen to twenty minutes, before there was a break from the incoming calls so that he could use it to contact the customers. The young lady that was there, instead of soothing him while he was on the communicator, would bolt out of the office, taking advantage of the break to look after her own needs. Fred did not tell the Captain any of this. When he first complained to the Captain about the crew wanting the more expensive meals, the Captain told him he was on their side. He could not understand why he was not buying their meals from the brothel, when they clearly could afford it. He was afraid if he complained to the Captain again, he might decide to have a closer look at how he was spending the money he was allocated, for maintaining the ship (which basically meant buying food, because it was Bikto who actually maintained the ship). He thought the Captain would not understand that he had to buy bobbles for the girls, because pheromones by themselves, were not enough to keep the girls fixated on him. Now that he had committed to buying the food, he had next to no credits left over to buy more bobbles.

While the Captain looked over the list of what he had been able to accomplish. He praised Fred for being able to deal with every piece of freight they were able to recover. There were five pieces of freight that the customers no longer needed, but were happy to hear they had recovered it. Those now belonged to Cothia. There were six pieces of freight that the customers did want back, fortunately, three of them where on planets they had already agreed to visit. That meant only three additional stops before he could drop the family off. Unfortunately, one of those stops was on a Sith occupied planet. They would have to be careful. He told Fred to pass the word along to the crew that they need to be ready to leave in two days, and to make sure that all the freight was loaded on the ship. Fred would have to get Coris to help him, along with some porter droids from the spaceport. He told the Captain he was happy to do it.

The Captain wondered why? Whenever he saw the reptile smile, he had chills run up and down his spine.

When Richard met with Cothia later that day, he was able to give her a safe date, for when he should be back, barring some unforeseen breakdown of the ship. He also told her that he has already told his crew to be ready to depart in two days, and he gave her a list of freight items that were now hers. She asked him what she was supposed to do with these. He told her that if she can't use it, sell it. She made a mental note to talk to the maintenance workers, maybe they know of people who might be willing to pay for them. She asked Richard if she could go ahead and purchase the land, and start building their home. Richard had mentioned that he always imagined his crew living next to him. They need to talk with Bikto, Pula, and their girlfriends, they might want to live there as well. She asked him about Fred and Coris. The Captain was certain that Fred would want to go back to his home planet of Falleen, once he knew his Captain was retiring, and he would not be given control of the ship. Coris on the other hand might be interested, he has been too long from the Uvena System, and might find it too hard to try and live in their society again. Cothia thought it would be cheaper, if they could buy a whole parcel of land together, and then they could set up their own private perimeter security. They had both made many friends over the years. They have also made a few enemies. She told Richard she wanted to talk with him about house designs after she came back for lunch. She asked if he could arrange for everyone to get together for a meeting this afternoon, about purchasing the land. That way she would know exactly what they are dealing with, and how she could get it.

While the Richard was going around, scheduling a meeting. The Masseuse got wind of it, and asked if she and her husband could also join in with them. Richard had always imagined five homes on top of that bluff, so he told her what time to be in Madam's office for the meeting.

Before leaving for the warehouse, Madam Cothia called the maintenance workers, and asked them to meet her at the warehouse. When she arrived at the warehouse, she asked the young lady answering the communicator to start calling people back, and gave her a firm date from when she could start booking the wedding chapel. The young lady put the communicator to busy, and ran for the bathroom. When she came back, she told Madam, that when she told her the good news, she became so excited she almost peed herself. She hugged Madam, and told her, that she will do her best, to help make this happen. Madam smiled, she could hear a happier tone in her voice, when she now spoke on the communicator. While she was in the warehouse, the maintenance workers came in. They told her that they had already moved the stuff out of her warehouse that customers were willing to buy back. They told her how many credits she could expect from the deal. They gave her a list of the items that now belonged to her. They also indicated all the items that no one knew where they came from. They believe the Rodian stole them from other freighters passing through their system, and they had no way of getting a hold of the rightful owners. Madam Cothia told them she has to get rid of all of it. She has finally decided to open up the warehouse as Cothia's Wedding Chapel. She needs the space to start renovations, and she needs the credits from the sale of the items, to help pay for it. She asked if they would agree to a 70/30 split, if they sold the items. She would get the larger share. They went outside to talk for a few minutes. They knew they could find buyers for most of it, really fast. That would be easy credits. The 70/30 split would be fair, but for the stuff that was going to be harder to move, they should ask for a clean 50/50. They were also higher end products, so when they are sold, they would bring them both more money. They went back in to talk with Madam. They pointed out which items would be harder to move. On those items they wanted an even split, on everything else they would do the 70/30. Madam agreed, and they shook hands on the agreement. Madam then went to the apartment beside the office. She wanted to clean it up the best she could, so that it would be easier for her seamstress to move in. She was wondering if she should split the apartment into two, when they are doing renovations, she could see the need to have a place to crash, when things were busy. She also thought they should construct a proper workshop for the seamstress, so that she was not working in the same room that she was eating and sleeping. She wanted to talk to Andriel about that one. When she was satisfied, she went into the office and asked the young lady if she wanted to come back with her, to the brothel for lunch. When she completed the next call, she put the communicator on busy, she could really use a lunch break. On the ride back, she told madam that 60% of the customers she has called back have agreed to a date, and want to come in, and sign a contract, and discuss the costs. 30% said they will keep looking, because the date they wanted, is already booked. 10% said that they already made other arrangements. Then she asked Madam how much they were charging for the chapel. Madam blushed, she told her she did not know yet. She has not taken the time to figure it out. She told Madam that she needs to figure it out quickly, because she already has two months' worth of contracts that people would be coming in to sign. She is also still getting new calls. She also thinks that many of the people who said they were still looking, will call back and settle for another date. Madam knew she was right, she wasn't prepared for this response. Now she has a lot of catching up to do, before she can even start thinking of getting ahead in this new business. She needs help, and her lieutenant might be too busy to help her. She might need to pull another couple of girls out of the brothel, to help with the business. Maybe she could figure out a sharing system, where they would work afternoons at the chapel, and nights at the brothel. They will want to get paid more. But if this works, it would be worth it.

After lunch, Madam found Coris, and asked him if he could get a couple of the guys, to help a pretty young lady pack up all her stuff, and move to the warehouse. Coris smiled, he knew she said pretty young lady for the benefit of the young men that were listening. She asked the young lady that was handling the communicator, if she could show the gentlemen where to go. Please knock before entering, we do not want to scare her half to death, by having all these men barge into her room. Coris, try to be the first guy in the room, because she knows you, and will feel better because of it. This surprised Coris, he did not know he had a calming influence on women. On the way to her office, with Richard in tow, she stopped at the kitchen, and told Chef, that they had another order for meals for a family with a child. The crew asked if you could make some extra breakfasts for the child, since other passengers were taking his breakfasts thinking they were the perfect snack size. Madam was the only one who saw her two girls turn bright red, as they were kneading the dough.

In her office, Madam did not go behind her desk, instead she sat beside Richard, and held his hand. She asked him if he could share his vision of his house on the bluff with her. He already said that he saw five houses on the bluff, she wants to know what his house looked like. Richard asked her if she has ever imagined a house she wants to live in. Cothia turned her head no. She told him that this house was the only house she ever imagined. When he proposed to her, and asked her to move in with him, she was very excited about living in a new house, but nothing came to her imagination. She asked Richard to share his vision with her. Richard saw tears in her eyes, he realised that this was important to her, he was also happy he could share his vision with her. At that moment, he loved her more, than he ever had before. He shared his vision of not only his house, but the other houses he envisioned on the bluff. She asked if he had ever shared this with anyone else. "Only with Bikto, when we had free time, or if we were working on a system together, to get it operational, we would share our visions of the type of house we want to live in. He helped me reshape my vision, and I helped him reshape his." She kissed his hand and told him that his vision was now theirs. They were alone in her office for only a short time after that. When Coris knocked on her door to tell her that he was back. They could start the meeting.

Madam Cothia was surprised to see the Masseuse and her husband, with the captain's crew, until she realised there were five groups present. She told them of the Captain's desire that they all share the bluff, and that it would be easier and cheaper to purchase if they do it together. The only thing they need to determine is where everyone should build their house and how big they should build it. She showed an aerial view of the bluff, than she drew on it where the captain envisioned, the houses should sit. She then indicated which house the captain preferred, he wanted the small one, on one end. Coris said he would take the small one on the other end, it would suit his purpose to build it in the Shistavanen style, like the one he grew up in. Bikto, who already knew the captain's vision, said he would take the larger one beside the Captain. The Masseuse said that she would take the house between her furry friends. Pula and his fiancé, were surprised that everyone wanted them to have the largest house in the middle. They asked why? Richard told them that he and Bikto had overheard him, sharing with his girlfriend, the things he wants in his house. Everyone knows that their house will be special, shielded from a wide range of electromagnetic radiation. So inside it will be a simple, peaceful house. "The garden and pool you want in your house will be very difficult to maintain by yourself, but if you are willing to share them with us, then we will be willing to help you maintain them. That way the main floor of your house will be our community room. The rest of the house is yours." The Masseuse said that she would even have a massage table there, to help everyone relax. Pula was floored, the garden and pool was something they argued about. They were not young Gotal anymore. She was afraid, that trying to maintain them, might kill him. But if they all help, they can have many happy years together. Pula said he could buy into this vision. His girlfriend said she could as well. They all agreed to hand over some credits to Madam Cothia. This way she could purchase the land and build the security perimeter. The women agreed that they would be responsible for the construction of their own houses. They asked Coris if they wanted them to start construction on his house. He told them he will look after it himself. They asked him, where he would live in the mean time? He told them he would move in with Pula and his wife, that way no one will be upset if they find fur on the couch. Everyone laughed. Pula told him he would sleep outside, if he starts shedding. They wanted to know what he was going to do, after he finished his house. He told them he would go back to the Uvena System to find the young lady he fell in love with, in their escape pod. When they fled the ship they were on, which was attacked by pirates. Everyone aboard was killed by the pirates, including their parents. They only escaped, because their escape pod flew through a Republic patrol, which was supposed to defend their system from pirates. Everyone knew, Coris hated pirates, and the more pirates he killed, the happier he was. Now they knew why.

"What will you do, if you find her?"

"I will ask her to come live with me."

That evening Cothia went to the "Fenelar Phoenix" with a hot dinner, accompanied by Richard. She needed to talk with Andriel and Chitrah. They were always happy for their company, and appreciated the hot meal. A fresh meal always tasted better than the prepared ones. She told Andriel about the young lady who was becoming a seamstress because of her designs. Which brought a smile to Andriel's face. She told them about finally agreeing to open a wedding chapel, the young lady has just moved into the apartment that is in the warehouse, but she was thinking that they should make her a proper workshop, so she is not sewing, were she eats and sleeps. Andriel agreed with her, and told her about the three basic pieces needed in a seamstresses' workshop, besides the sewing machine. She also had Chitrah print something off for her, and gave it to Cothia. She saw that they were rules, and asked Andriel what they were rules for. "Every professional seamstress knows these rules, and lives by these rules. If your young lady wants to be a seamstress, then she needs to know the rules." Cothia than asked Chitrah if he could do a search on the net for wedding chapels. Since she has agreed to let the public in, she has two months' worth of bookings. And everyone wants to come over and sign a contract to confirm the bookings. Not only does she not know what to charge, she does not know how to right up a contract. She desperately needs help. After dinner, while Chitrah was conducting his search, Andriel drew two sketches. One was of her workshop on Lianna, the other one was of Mrs. Grimshaw's workshop on Yitabo. Cothia thanked her, then asked her about purchasing a professional grade sewing machine for the new seamstress. Andriel liked that Cothia really cared about the women that worked for her. She told her that there were two professional sewing machines that were good for the seamstress that was just starting out. She used her computer to call them up, and the prices they go for brand new. She told her they were the main workhorse in most of the dress shops around the galaxy. If you can find a used one, you have to snap it up right away, because if you blink, it is gone. Cothia jotted down all the information Andriel shared with her. She suspected that she would buy a new one, because she did not have the time to hunt around for a used one. Chitrah returned to the crew lounge with a huge stack of paper. The top five pages were a copies of the main page of popular wedding chapels. You can see that they all have their prices prominently displayed. The people who booked with her must have visited these sites before, so knew what price to expect when booking. The next number of pages are a copy of their booking contracts, at a quick glance, they all looked the same to him. The rest of the pile are helps, and instructions, for planning weddings, including, "Wedding Planning For Dummies." Cothia kissed Chitrah on the lips, she was so happy. Then she became embarrassed, and apologised to both Andriel and Richard. Who just laughed! On the ride back to the brothel. Cothia snuggled up to Richard, who put his arm around her.

"I wish they could stay."

"You know that can't happen."

"I know, but everything that was going wrong, ends up going right when they are around."

The next morning, before Madam Cothia woke up her lieutenant, for their meeting. The young lady living at the warehouse contacted her, she looked like she had been up all night. She told Madam Cothia that she needs to come over right away. Madam asked what was wrong. She said nothing was wrong, she just finished the first dress. She has to come over and try it on right away. Madam told her she will be right there, and bolted out the door, and hopped onto the skiff, like she was a woman half her age. She burst into the apartment at the warehouse and asked the young lady to help her undress. She said that the seamstress who designed the dress said she would not need to wear any of her special undergarments. The young lady was quite surprised to see all that Madam wore, she just thought she had a very youthful body. Now she knew that that was a lie. She did however have a nicely toned body that most women her age would die for. After helping her out of the special equipment, she helped her into the dress. This was definitely a different woman, than the one who burst in here. She was older, maybe not what you would call more beautiful, but definitely attractive. She would still turn heads, but it was all natural. Cothia liked this look. If she looked this good in all of Andriel's designs, then she would not need the special underwear anymore. She gave the young lady a hug, and thanked her for finishing the dress. She than told her to get some sleep, because she looked a mess. She will make sure that no-one will bother her until it was time for her to come back to the brothel for lunch. The young lady asked her a special favour. She asked if she could sew a dress for herself based on this design. She was sure that she knew what alterations she needs to make, so that it would fit her body. Madam held her hands, and looked into her eyes. She asked her why she had stayed up all night, finishing this dress. The young lady blushed, and told her that she knew from her conversations with her friends before Madam came back from her trip. That they had met with the woman who designed this dress, and were expecting her to design some wedding dresses for them. But after Madam came back, they would not talk to her anymore about the seamstress. She knew she still had to be in town, because she hasn't seen any new dress designs yet. She wanted the seamstress to know that she was up to the challenge. Madam Cothia told her, "To know this lady exists is dangerous to your life."

"I suspected that that is why they stopped talking to me."

"You really want to meet her don't you?"

"With all my heart!"

"We will be saying goodbye to her this evening. You can come with us."

As Madam turned to leave, she said, "It can't be the same colour." The young lady collapsed onto her bed, with a smile on her face. She was asleep before her body stopped bouncing.

After lunch the young seamstress was sent to the market with one of the two girls. They were sent to buy all the supplies that were promised to Andriel. When Chef passed along the last of the prepared meals, he made sure that everyone knew which meals were labeled for passengers, and which ones for the crew, he did not want them taking the meals to the wrong ship. He also pulled Madam Cothia aside, he told her that one of her girls was in the kitchen to knead dough, even though she knew the machine was working again, she said that she was disappointed by how weak her hands had become. When she was home working on her parents farm, this used to be real easy. Now it was hard. Madam asked him to let her know if she continues, and not to discourage her. Chef was flabbergasted, "The dough kneaded by hand is always better than what the machine can produce." The next time Madam saw the Masseuse, she let her know what her girl was doing. The Masseuse told her, that if she continues for a few more days, than she will start training her to massage. On the trip to the spaceport. Madam told her girls that they have to brief the new seamstress when they return to the brothel, the girls were happy that there would be one more person in their group they could talk to. It was especially nice, since she was a close friend, and because they were hopping that she could sew them some outfits, as nice as the one she had sewn for Madam. At the spaceport, all the girls followed Madam up the ramp, into the ship. Madam introduced their new budding seamstress, to the Master Seamstress and Dress Designer. The young lady grabbed Andriel, and started crying on her shoulder. Between her tears she told Andriel how happy she was to finally meet her.

Krillgan pulled on his mother's dress, until she turned and looked at him. He saw that his mother had tears in her eyes as well.

"Do all ladies cry when they are happy?"

"No! And Yes!"

Krillgan look at his father. He just raised his hands close to shoulder height, and shook his head.

Krillgan crossed his arms in disappointment, how was he supposed to learn anything if his parents don't know. After she finished crying, the young lady kneeled down and gave Krillgan a hug.

"They never told me there was such a handsome young man aboard."

Krillgan blushed, and said, "Don't cry on me. But I am happy to meet you too."

All the ladies giggled. Madam told Andriel that they have brought everything, according to her agreement with her two girls. One girl handed Andriel a large bag, filled with fresh fruits and vegetables. The other handed Krillgan a bag of fresh berries. "We heard that you love these." Krillgan look at his mother. "After you are finished your dinner." He quickly popped two berries into his mouth. Then handed the bag to his father, they were too great a temptation. His father promptly popped a couple of berries into his mouth, and patted his son on his head. Krillgan wanted to say something to his mother, but could not, because of the berries in his mouth. He just crossed his arms again. The girls tried to hide their smiles. Andriel handed the new seamstress two new designs. They were the wedding dresses. Andriel had even drawn two horns on the figure with the design for Pula's girlfriend. She could see little flowers around the base of the horns, it looked so cute. All the ladies crowded around her, because they wanted to see the designs for themselves. One of the girls asked Andriel how they could get a hold of her, when it was their turn to marry. Andriel smiled, she told them they won't need to. Their seamstress will have her own designs by then. This made the young lady blush, it also made her feel very proud. Her friends just hugged her. They all told her that they could hardly wait to see her designs. After they finished loading the extra freight, the whole crew came aboard. It was time to say goodbye. The girls went around and hugged everyone. The young lady knelt down to hug Krillgan, but instead, started crying on his shoulder.

"Are you happy again?"

"No. I'm sad. You're leaving, and I've only just met you."

Krillgan hugged her. "It is okay to cry then."

After takeoff, Chitrah approached the Captain, he told him that he had conducted a search on the net, and found these places that where offering non-powered cobbler equipment for sale. He told him that this one was interesting, it looked like an estate sale, and the survivors were trying to get as much as they could for everything, without knowing its value, which means no one will come look at the equipment, because it is way overpriced. They will probably accept the first offer made to them. This is the maximum, it should go for, and Chitrah handed the captain some credits. Now Chitrah knew what planet they were on, because he had been inside the spaceport's main building. He knew that the planet he indicated as having the Cobbler's Equipment, was in a system nearby. What he did not know, was that was their next destination.

After they landed on the next planet. The Captain told Fred that he was in charge, and left the ship. The crew assumed that he was going to sell vials of Kolto to the apothecary, and maybe buy some extra vials. Which was true, but he was also running an errand for Chitrah. The crew had started being very creative in how they packed the freight into the one cargo bay, because they did not want any cargo going into the cargo bay that they had set up as a workout room. They had nice mats on the floor, so that they could practice all the martial-arts that Chitrah taught them, with little worry of being injured. If they were injured, Krillgan was right there to heal them. In the one corner they had set up a sand filled bag, so that they could practise their punches and kicks. At the far end was Andriel's sewing machine. Bikto had a hard time bringing in some new lighting for her. So no one on the crew wanted any containers of freight ruining it. They had just finished fitting in the last piece of freight into the cargo bay. There was not even enough room for Krillgan to stand, when they were finally able to close the doors to the cargo bay. You can imagine how they felt when the Captain returned with a skiff, stacked with crates on it. Even Fred approached the Captain and told him they had no more room in their cargo bay. Captain Richard ignored him, and walked up to Chitrah. He handed him a fist full of credits. "You were right! They accepted the first offer." He then told the crew to put the crates wherever Chitrah wants them. All the crew felt better knowing this was Chitrah's stuff. Except Bikto. He knew that it would be his responsibility to make sure that whatever equipment is in those crates, gets securely fastened to the deck of the cargo bay. The empty crates would need to be secured against the back bulkhead of the cargo bay, alongside the crate that Andriel's sewing machine came in. More than likely he would have to run more lights to the back of the cargo bay, so Chitrah can see what he is doing. One thing he has learnt over the years, as the ship's engineer, is, he is usually too busy, to get bored.

Chitrah had the crew carry the crates into their cargo bay. Everyone but the Captain was there, to watch him open the crates, because they wanted to see what was inside. Chitrah assumed that the three crates that were the same size would contain workshop benches. He opened them up, and let Andriel pick one for herself, since she had no workbench, and was using the deck of the cargo bay as her workbench. She picked the one with the least nicks, scratches, and scuffs. And showed the crew where she wanted it. Every time a crate was emptied, Bikto made sure it was placed against the back bulkhead. Of the two remaining work benches, Chitrah selected one for him to work on, the other would be to store all the jigs, and tools, and the materials, since there were no shelves or storage compartments, in the cargo bay. The jigs and tools were just as he hoped. He could tell that they were used by a man who loved his work, and made sure that all his equipment was in top working order. It was a shame that no one in his family was willing to share his passion. Chitrah then opened the tallest of the crates. The crew was surprised to see a giant sewing machine inside, when compared to the one Andriel was using. It was also much heavier. The crew really had to work together to get it out of its crate, and position it where Chitrah wanted it. Fred commented that he did not want to meet the lady, Chitrah would be sewing dresses for. This made everyone laugh. Fred was surprised, they had never laughed at anything he had said before. He wondered if using pheromones actually stops people from laughing, because other emotions were being stimulated. After everything was unpacked, Chitrah thanked everyone for their help. He also talked with Bikto, giving his estimate on how much each item weighed. So Bikto would know how best to secure it. He also showed him where the lights should be positioned. The next day Krillgan was seen running around the ship, in his brand new slippers. Over the next few days, Chitrah made slippers for almost everyone on the crew. Only they did not like calling them slippers. They preferred to call them deck shoes. Because Coris did not wear footwear, Chitrah made him fingerless workout gloves, for both his hand paws, and his foot paws. Coris liked them so much, he wore them everywhere, even when he left the ship. He found strangers giving him a wider berth when he was off the ship, and he asked Pula about it. Pula told him that they are giving him more room, because he looks like he is ready for a fight. Coris saw that, as they were giving him more respect, and liked that idea.

The rest of the students in Chitrah's martial-arts class, also asked him to make workout gloves for them. Andriel mentioned she would like some too. The ones that were the most difficult to make were the pair for Krillgan, because his hands were so small, and the equipment he was using, did not have the precision that the equipment he worked with on Lianna did.

During this time, Krillgan came upon Fred trying to persuade Pula to do something for him, and was emitting pheromones. Fred had gotten used to emitting pheromones again, during their time at the brothel, and did not know he was doing it now. Krillgan told him to stop, and reminder him what the Captain said. The embarrassed Fred just walked away.

Pula thanked him, and patted him on the head, he was about to give in to the First Officer's persuasions.

Kenny was in Mr. Radcliff's office. They were discussing the last communiqué they had received from the Cerean Bounty Hunter. She had mentioned that she was on her way to Yitabo, to make her final report in person. They were trying to determine if this was good news or bad news. Her previous communiqué was from Mandalore. In it, she said that she was going to kill the Mandalorian, for what he had his people do to her ship. They knew that her killing the Mandalorian would not bring an end to the contract, unless she killed the family in the process. Mr. Radcliff told Kenny to contact the spaceport, and let them know that she has their permission, to land next to their ranch house. Tell them that she will not be taking anything off of her ship, but herself. Remind them, that we know they are monitoring our ranch house from space, and will be able to see this for themselves.

The senior official in charge of the spaceport, was not happy to read the junior official's report. Indicating that Mr. Radcliff knew about their satellite surveillance. He ordered the junior official to delete that from his report, before he passed it along.

Kenny met the Cerean as she climbed out of her ship. He asked her if Andriel's mother would want to hear her report. "Most definitely! It is important for her, to hear what I have to say." Kenny started breathing easier, it was not bad news. He asked her to give him 15 minutes to get everyone together. She will be presenting her report in the family room, rather than in Mr. Radcliff's office.

Kenny rushed into the kitchen, and asked Bacgruta to prepare some refreshments for everyone including the bounty hunter, they will be meeting in the family room. He then went to Mr. Radcliff's office. He found Emily sitting on Mr. Radcliff's desk, talking with her husband. He smiled because he knew she was the only one ever allowed to do it. Not even Mr. Radcliff ever sat of his own desk. Kenny told them that the meeting would be in the family room in ten minutes, and Bacgruta was preparing refreshments. Kenny could see that both of their faces appeared more relaxed, they also had been expecting bad news.

The Bounty Hunter started her report, right from the moment she was hired, she gave them detailed descriptions of everything she observed, details she could not pass along in her reports. She apologised to Mrs. Radcliff, for leading the Mandalorian Bounty Hunter to her daughter and her family, when Mr. Radcliff revealed to her where she was. Mrs. Radcliff told her she forgave her, and too continue her report. Mrs. Radcliff and Bacgruta had tears in her eyes, hearing how many strangers went out of their way to help her daughter and her family. The Cerean skipped over the part where she killed some of the Mandalorian's people, and destroyed his hanger. Mr. Radcliff had that in his report from her, when she sent it from Mandalore. If he needed more details she could give it to him afterwards. She told them how she was able to persuade the Selkath elders to share some information with her. They refused to tell her what happened on Manaan. But they were willing to say that the family was safe, and confessed that they did not know where they are, or where they are going. They were not willing to share what happened to the Mandalorian Bounty Hunter, but she is pretty sure he is dead. She told them about stopping off on Mandalore on her way back, and gave them just enough information for them to believe their Bounty Hunter had betrayed them and sold himself out to the Republic, or some third party that wanted to get their hands on the family. They would not have believed her, if she told them that their Bounty Hunter was dead, and she did not kill him. They even paid her to stay on Mandalore, while they confirmed what they could of her information. They ended up placing a bounty on the Mandalorian's head, and even asked her if she was willing to accept the contract. She told them it would take too much of her time, and she felt it would take a much better tracker than her to find the Mandalorian Bounty Hunter. She also told them that the bounty on the family is now double what it first was.

She asked Mrs. Radcliff if she knew if her daughter Andriel had another mother. The Selkath were very keen on finding out. They had a prophecy that they are supposed to help a woman who has three mothers, and her family. After I told them that Andriel had more than one mother, they were very excited, they believe that Andriel may be the woman mentioned in their prophecy. Mrs. Radcliff told her that she was sorry she did not know. Bacgruta spoke up, and said that she knew who would know. Her good friend Shaak Chi, on Lianna, was also a close friend of Andriel. She was sure that she and her companions would know. When she heard that she had companions, she asked Bacgruta, if Shaak Chi is Togruta? Bacgruta said she is, and her father was one of the clan elders.

After the Cerean finished her report. Mr. Radcliff invited her to his office to speak with her. She was not surprised that his man, Kenny, joined them. He first assured her that Kenny would make the arrangements for the final payment to be made to her account. She assured him that she was not worried about that, since they had a solid reputation, except when it came to the performing arts. Mr. Radcliff turned red, and Kenny tried not to smile. Mr. Radcliff asked her if she was willing to share what she was planning on doing next. She told them that following his stepdaughter and her family, had awaken her own maternal instincts. She was planning on returning to Cerea, to see if she could join with a family, and find a job in R&D. He told her that he wanted to offer her a job bonus. He could arrange for her to have an interview, with the head of Santhe Corporation. He knows from his contacts, that she was keeping an eye on Andriel and Chitrah, while they were on Lianna. He was sure that she would be interested in hearing her final report. They also have a very good Research and Development Department, for weapons and starcraft systems. He was sure they would be very interested in her weapons, and the modifications she made to her own ship. He suggested that she fly there first, before heading to Cerea. The Cerean knew that Santhe Corporation had a very good reputation, in developing technologies. It was in her best interest to check this out first, this could be a good fall back option, if things don't work out on Cerea. She accepted his offer, since she was heading to Lianna anyway. He handed her an envelope. It was made from very expensive stationary. When she glanced at what was handwritten on the outside, she smiled, she knew he was ex-military.

After escorting her to her ship, Kenny went to the communicator to arrange the fund transfer. He noticed that there was a message on their special line. After listening to it, he went straight to Mr. Radcliff's office. He told him that one of their former captains is getting married, and they have been invited to the wedding. Mr. Radcliff asked him, if he was going? "You know I can't take Bacgruta on that type of trip, the risk is too great, and I will not leave my new bride to be here by herself. You should take Emily and go, if only to renew old contacts." Mr. Radcliff agreed, and asked him if he could make the arrangements. He also asked him to let Emily know, he is counting on her for suggestions for wedding presents.

As soon as the Cerean Bounty Hunter was close enough to contact Lianna's spaceport, she asked for permission to land on Lianna, at Santhe Corporation Headquarters. They asked her the reason for her request. She said that she was carrying a personnel letter from Commodore Radcliff, retired, to Madam Santhe, Head of Santhe Corporation. After quite a few minutes of silence, the traffic co-ordinator reconnected with her. Her request had been approved, planetary co-ordinates are being beamed to her navigational system. When the system indicated it had new co-ordinates, she called back. "Confirm, co-ordinates received."

There was quite the reception for her at the surface spaceport. As soon as the ship landed, it was immediately surrounded by Santhe Security. When the officer in charge saw that the pilot was a female Cerean, he ordered his forces further away. More than doubling the distance between them and the ship. The Bounty Hunter laughed, she knew it was because of the reputation Cerean's have of booby-trapping their own ships. She decided to play along, instead of getting out of her ship right away, she decided to eat some of the wonderful baked goods Mrs. Radcliff, and Bacgruta, baked for her. She was sure security would think she was arming her booby-traps. After enough time had passed, she climbed out of her ship. The officer in charge approached her and asked to see the letter. She told him that she was instructed to personally deliver it.

"Not without us first testing it, you're not."

After she handed it over, he instructed her to follow him. He placed it in a special container. To the Bounty Hunter, it looked like he was putting a piece of smoked meat, between two slices of bread. A piston of inert gas was forced through the envelope. Then this gas was passed through a spectral analyser. If there was anything in the envelope, that could harm Madam Santhe, this machine could detect it. Then they ran a special sniffer over her body, looking for chemical or biological agents. They asked her if she was carrying any weapons on her. She told them she had left all her weapons on her ship. They asked her if there was any metals on her person. She told them which pieces of her outfit had metals. What the metals were, and approximately how much metal there was. They told her that they had programmed the metal content of her clothing into their security computer, every time she goes from one section of the building to another, her body will be scanned. If the scans are within the parameters she has given, the computer will let her proceed. For her own personal knowledge, the computer is not allowed to do a body scan, because they have female personnel, so creating images is not allowed. At this time a non-security person, approached her, and asked her to follow him. She was handed the envelope back, before she turned to follow. She counted going through six scanners before reaching Madam Santhe's office. The scanners did not bother her, because everyone had to go through them. She liked their security operations, no wonder it was so highly respected throughout the galaxy. Madam Santhe just looked like another upper management employee, except the cut of her suit was a class above everyone else. What you would expect from a Queen. When she entered the office, she asked her, how she preferred to be addressed?

"Madam Santhe is fine."

"Yes Madam Santhe."

She handed over the envelope, and Madam Santhe asked her to be seated. She asked her if she knew what was written in the letter. She told her she did not, she was only allowed to read what was written on the outside. Mr. Radcliff told her that Madam Santhe would want to hear her last report on the job assignment she just completed for him. She did not know he held the position of Commodore, until she read it on the envelope.

After reading the letter inside, Madam Santhe, asked her office computer to seal her door. Then she asked the bounty hunter to give her report. Half way through the report, Madam Santhe stopped her, and asked her if she would like something to drink. After she made her request, Madam Santhe asked her office computer to contact her secretary, and told her what beverages to bring them. After the beverages were brought and the door was resealed, Madam Santhe asked her to continue.

What the bounty hunter did not know is that Madam Santhe can only spend a specific amount of time alone in her office with non-company personnel. If she exceeds the allotted time, than her office computer automatically issues a hostage crisis alert, which is why she had to stop her, and find an excuse to unseal her door. After the report was finished, Madam Santhe asked her, if she believes the bounty hunter is dead? She said she did. She asked her if Andriel and Chitrah killed him, or if something else happened? She told Madam Santhe that the Selkath were in awe of the family, which means that the adults did not kill the bounty hunter. So either Krillgan killed the bounty hunter, or something else did, that had grabbed the attention of the Selkath. Because they just don't behave that way towards outsiders. Madam Santhe was surprised that she would consider Krillgan as the one who killed the bounty hunter. The Cerean told her, that there was enough evidence that Krillgan is a force user. Even though he is a very friendly, and thoughtful child. If he thought his parents were in imminent danger, he could probably unleash enough raw energy from the force, that he could kill a man. After all the Sith claim that their Emperor was only slightly older than Krillgan, when he used the force to kill both his parents. The thought that a child could have that much power, sent chills up Madam Santhe's spine. She asked the bounty hunter, of the two scenarios she just presented, which was the most likely? The Cerean Bounty Hunter said she believed that the later scenario was the most likely. The reason being, that the Bounty Hunter was trying to capture them alive, so the imminent danger of them being killed, is highly unlikely. On top of that, Krillgan knows that both his parents are highly skilled in self-defence, so the only way the Bounty Hunter could capture them is to immobilise them. I believe that the Bounty Hunter was arrogant enough, that if he did manage to immobilise one of them, he would leave himself exposed to the other, which would be his downfall. Madam Santhe asked if she was sure that that did not happen. She told her, that if the parents had killed the Bounty Hunter, the Selkath would respect them, but not go out of their way to help them, and they would not hide what happened to outsiders like her.

Madam could not argue with her analysis of the situation. She then asked about her weapons and her ship? After the Cerean described what modifications and upgrades she has done, Madam Santhe asked if she would mind if her R&D team could analyse her stuff. If they confirm everything she has shared, she would like to offer her a position. The Cerean said she had no objection. Madam Santhe asked if she needs to go back to her ship, to dismantle her booby-traps, or can she pass along instructions from here? She told her that her ship was not booby-trapped, her security had shown her enough respect that she did not feel she had to set any. Madam Santee wanted to know, what did she do in her ship, while they were waiting for her to come out? She told Madam Santhe about the wonderful baked goods Mrs. Radcliff, and her other daughter, Bacgruta, prepared for her. She just had to have a snack before climbing out of the ship. Because Madam Santhe had already unsealed her door, everyone in the officer heard her, when she started laughing. She called down to security and told them there were no traps set, it was safe to tow the ship into the R&D hanger. Madam Santhe then led her to the R&D department to introduce her to the personnel working there. On the way, Madam Santhe told her that half her department were Cerean like herself, the other half were human. She asked Madam Santhe if the Cerean were all females. Madam Santhe said the Cerean's were all one family. There was one husband and three wives. The Bounty Hunters heart started to beat harder, was it possible that she did not have to go to Cerea to find a family that would accept her as one of the wives. She hardly noticed the humans that Madam Santhe introduced her to. She was looking at the Cereans. Apparently they were sitting around a round table taking a break. The husband was a young handsome Cerean, and his three wives were approximately the same age as she was. She would have no trouble fitting in with this family. They all stood up when they saw Madam Santhe approaching with a new Cerean female. After Madam Santhe introduced them, letting them know she was thinking of hiring her. The husband asked her, "Would you care to join us?" Her heart skipped a beat, he had just proposed marriage to her. One by one the other women spoke, "We would love to have you join us!" That was the bond wife, giving her permission to marry her husband. "Yes, please do." "Please join us." Those were his honour wives, also giving their permission. "I would love to, but she has not hired me yet." She just told them that she agrees to the marriage, but it is contingent upon her being hired.

Madam Santhe was astute enough to know that there was more communicating going on here, than she was hearing. The bond wife asked her, what did she need, before she was willing to hire the new Cerean? Madam Santhe told her that hiring the new Cerean was contingent upon them receiving a favourable report from them, after they examine her weapons, and ship. When the Bounty Hunter heard that the Cereans and not the humans, would be examining her equipment. She told Madam Santhe that she would be expecting a contract from her outlining her terms of employment. Madam asked her why? Did she expect more favourable treatment from her own people? "On the contrary. I expect them to be more critical. Therefore their report will be more thorough and unbiased, and you will see that I did not exaggerate on any of my claims." Madam Santhe really liked this Cerean. "In that case, why don't we head over to the Personnel Department, and start working on the paperwork, so we don't waste time after they confirm what you told me.

All the wives hugged the new comer, the husband planted a kiss on her lips. The agreement is sealed, soon there will be a wedding. Madam Santhe arranged for the Bounty Hunter to be put up in the company's singles residence, she did not want her being in contact with the other Cereans, so that the rest of the department could not accuse her of coaching them, when they wrote up their report.

The wives worked through the night, it was important to them to do as thorough, and as quick a job as possible. It was not good for their husband to wait too long for his new bride.

Before the end of the next workday. Madam Santhe was surprised to see two reports on her desk. One was an analysis of the weapons, the other was a report on the ship. Madam Santhe called the Head of R&D, a human, and asked him, if he has had time to read the reports. He told her that he read the report on the weapons, and is still reading the report on the ship. She asked him, what did he think? She did not exaggerate with the weapons. From what he has read so far about the ship. Her modifications can be applied to the new hyperspace drive they are designing, which would greatly increase its speed through hyperspace. She asked him what his recommendation was concerning her. "Definitely hire her. She has already agreed to a demonstration tomorrow, of her rocket launcher and her rockets." Next Madam Santhe contacted the head of Personnel, inquiring if the Cerean Bounty Hunter is still waiting in his department? When she found out she was. She told him to have her sign all the papers, she now worked for Santhe Corporation. She has permission to move in with the family. That evening, right after their dinner. The Cereans had a private wedding ceremony. Because it was her wedding night, the Bounty Hunter had her husband all to herself, for the night. The other wives retired shortly after the wedding ceremony, they were exhausted from all the hard work they did the past two days.


	3. Chapter 3

©2016

The Cerean Bounty Hunter soon forgot her reason for coming to Lianna. Since her family was very small by Cerean standards, she had no trouble fitting in with the other wives, and she found that she did not have to compete with the other wives for her husband's affection, like her mother did. At work she was placed right away, on the hyperspace drive development team. She helped them to build the upgrades she had done to her own ship, right into the design. Making it more efficient. Since the team leader had read the report on her ship, when she recommended a certain alloy be used for a certain part, it became his recommendation. He reasoned, that because they were trying to rush the new design to Manufacturing, as quickly as possible, to get the prototype built. They can discuss the use of alloys during the initial testing phase. If the right alloys were used right from the beginning, it makes the whole team look better.

When Madam Santhe talked to the Head of Personnel about the new recruit, he informed her that she was fitting in very well. Output from all the wives was up, while the husband's output remained steady.

It was only when one of the wives asked her, to tell them about her last assignment as a Bounty Hunter? That she remembered that her job was not finished. She told the family what she still needed to do. They told her that she needed to go straight from work, to go find the Togruta. They would make her dinner when she returned. When she went to personnel to arrange permission to leave the Santhe Compound, they sent her straight to Madam Santhe's office. She told Madam Santhe, about the Selkath asking her to find out if Andriel had three mothers. She then told her about their prophecy, and about expecting a blessing, if she indeed was the woman whose family they were supposed to help. Now Madam Santhe was interested in everything she could find out about Andriel, so she made sure that the Bounty Hunter knew, she wanted to be kept informed. She then asked her about the testing of the new hyperdrive. She told Madam Santhe, that they had completed all the static tests they could do in the lab. Now they needed to install in on a test ship, to see how it really performed. Madam Santhe suggested that a trip to and from Manaan, might be a good test for the new drive. The Bounty Hunter was overjoyed! On paper, this new drive should get her to Manaan, three times faster than her own ship could. She told Madam Santhe that she would see that this ship and all of its test equipment was hooked up and ready to go as soon as possible. Madam Santhe smiled, it always amazed her, how quickly things get done around here, when she used the right motivator.

The bounty hunter left work early that day, not because she did not have enough to do, but because Madam Santhe told her what time she needed to be at the shuttle terminal, in order to make it to the dress shop Andriel had opened with her Togruta friend, before it closed. She did not bother going back to the family's residence to change. She thought that Santhe Corporation coveralls would be less intimidating than her bounty hunter outfit, which were the only clothes she owned. While sitting in the shuttle, waiting for it to take-off, it was delayed due to some mechanical failure, she wondered how come the Queen of Lianna knew so much about Andriel and her family, when the Sith did not? Weren't the Sith supposed to be watching her? They pretend to know everything, yet they are really very ignorant.

The shuttle started moving, so she decided to sit back and relax.

She arrived at the dress shop just as three Togruta women, with two young children were locking-up. She asked them if they were Shaak Chi, Shaas Baa, and Bandaa Shuuk. She sensed the women tense, she could not understand why they would tense. "Are you friends of Andriel Mirranna and Bacgruta Togruta?" The women seemed not as tense. She also noticed that their outfits looked unusual, not what you would expect from ladies coming out of a dress shop.

"How do you know Bacgruta?" The bounty hunter noticed movement under the one woman's dress. She tensed, and wondered why. The Togruta don't have four sets of arms. She could not possibly be pointing a weapon at her. Shaak noticed were she was looking. "It's only my daughter, she is nursing." Then it dawned on the bounty hunter, these outfits are designed for nursing, she must tell the other wives about them. "Oh, I'm sorry, your daughter distracted me. I just finished a job for Mr. Radcliff on Yitabo. Bacgruta told me that you would know the answer to a question, the Selkath have asked me." Shaak suggested that she walk with them, they are heading back to their enclave. Then she introduced her and her companions to the Cerean. No wonder they tensed, she had used their full names, but they only introduced themselves by their given name.

She told them about Bacgruta. She was now married, to Mr. Radcliff's right hand man, Kenny. The girls became giddy when they heard that Bacgruta was married, they started walking faster, almost like they wanted to skip. They wanted to tell everyone in the enclave. There will be a party tonight. She told them that Kenny was more than twenty years older than her, but was in very good shape, so when you see them, you would think that they were close to the same age. Mrs. Radcliff had adopted her as her daughter, just as she had adopted Andriel, so now they are sisters. Shaak stopped dead in her tracks. "Andriel's mother is called Mrs. Grimshaw not Mrs. Radcliff." "She was Mrs. Grimshaw, now she is Mrs. Radcliff." "But I thought they did not like one another." "Apparently they had been dating for quite a while, then Mr. Radcliff broke it off, because they were getting too close, and Mr. Radcliff had not yet determined if Mrs. Grimshaw was more interested in his credits, or in him. So when Andriel and Chitrah showed up, and Mr. Radcliff saw that Mrs. Grimshaw was getting attached to Andriel. He decided to test her, and got carried away." To Shaak, that sounded almost believable. She was sure there was more to the story, but there was so many other things to ask about, so she asked what work she did for Mr. Radcliff? They tensed, as she expected, when she told them she was a bounty hunter. Then they relaxed again when she told them the reason why she was hired. She told them about following the Mandalorian Bounty Hunter. As he tried chasing Andriel and her family across the galaxy. She told them that she was always amazed that strangers were willing to help them, and how they were able to keep one step ahead of the bounty hunter.

When they arrived at the Togruta Enclave, Shaak led them into the common room, and banged on a table, which made her daughter cry, and told everyone that Bacgruta has married a nice man. A lot of the people cheered, and some of the Togruta men and women started dancing. Shaak pulled her arms into her outfit, so that she could comfort her daughter. The bounty hunter told her that she had a very interesting outfit. Shaak told her it was designed by Andriel. It was her last design, before she left. Shaak told her that she has to stay for dinner, than took her to introduce her to the elders. Her companions handed their children off to some ladies sitting near the weaving looms, and headed to the kitchen to help with the last minute preparations for this evening's meal. The Cerean, was invited to sit with the elders, and Shaak sat beside her. After her companions finished bringing out the food for the elders' table, they went and retrieved their children, and sat beside Shaak. They continued talking through the meal, and everyone else tried to listen. When Shaak found out that Madam Santhe, the Queen, wanted to hear about Andriel, Shaak decided to tell her about the blanket Andriel bought from Santhe Corporation, and how she used it. The Cerean was very impressed. As Shaak continued telling her, what she had done on Eriadu. The Cerean stopped her for one moment.

"So Andriel does have three mothers." Shaak thought about it for a moment, then affirmed that she does. She told Shaak that that was the information the Selkath had asked her about, because they have a prophecy, that if they help a woman, and her family, who has three mothers, from two different species, they will be blessed. Andriel has two mothers who are Devaronian, and one mother who is human, it appears that she is the woman mentioned in their prophecy. She apologised for interrupting Shaak, and asked her to continue.

They exchanged a lot of information as they ate their dinner. After they finished, and the table was cleared of food, the Togruta women got up to dance in celebration about hearing of Bacgruta's marriage. Shaak handed her daughter to the Cerean, so that she could dance with the other women. The Cerean was ecstatic that she was given the privilege of holding a Togruta baby that was only a few months old. She was torn between looking at the baby, and watching the women dance. After the women finished their dance, the men got up and did their celebration dance. After they finished the women got up to dance again. This time they all wanted the Cerean to dance with them, since she brought them the good news. An elder took the baby from the Cerean, and passed her down the table until she reached the hands of Shaak's father. They taught the Cerean some simple dance moves that she could do with them as they kept the rhythm of the dance and the singing. The Cerean could not do the dance moves they were doing, but by doing the moves they showed her, she blended in. When the men got up to dance again, the Cerean remembered that she had to get home to her family. She told them she had a wonderful time.

They invited her to come back with her family. They told her that they were going to have a special feast, in half a month's time. Even the local humans bring their children to play in their enclave, when they have a feast. They were also expecting some of their Nautolan friends to join them. The Cerean told them, she would try to convince her family, because she was convinced that they would enjoy themselves as well. Shaak had gone to the kitchen to bag some of the desert treats they were going to have with tea after the dancing. She handed the bag to the Cerean to enjoy on her flight back. She had one when she boarded the shuttle. It was so good, that she knew she had to share them with her family.

The bounty hunter's family had grown concerned about her, they thought she should have been home by now. They had already put away the food that they had thought of cooking for her dinner, since it was too late to have a heavy meal. The husband had delayed going to his bedroom with the wife whose turn it was to be with him, because he wanted to make sure the bounty hunter was all right. When she entered the apartment, they saw right away, that she was very happy. When the bounty hunter saw her husband waiting with the rest of his wives, she was embarrassed, and apologised to them. She told them that she was not yet used to being responsible to others. She put the desert pieces on a plate, and went around the room, starting with her husband, so that everyone could try a piece. She told them that the Togruta had fed her, and even taught her a few dance steps, and she did them while humming the rhythm of the music. Than they invited her to come back with her family to their special feast. She told them the date, she also told them that the local humans come with their children, and they were expecting some Nautolan friends. Even though she is the newest wife, she thinks that it would be good for the family.

The husband thanked her for sharing, he was now retiring to his room. He took the hand of the wife that was accompanying him. In the bedroom he asked his wife, what she thought, of going to the Togruta's feast. She told him that the bounty hunter obviously had a good time with the Togruta this evening. It would be worthwhile to go as a family, even if they go only once, so that they can share her experience. The husband agreed. The wife was very excited, she would be the one to share this decision with the others at breakfast. Even though the new wife was late, her husband is in a good mood, they should have a good time this evening.

On Cerea, it is not normal practise for families to go out together. That is because you are usually organising an event for between 15 to 30 Adults. It is even harder when children are involved. So if they do go, it is for more than food. Restaurants usually only cater to single women who do not have time to cook for themselves. When a family goes out, they want entertainment with their food. Mystery Dinner Theatre are the most popular, because they challenge the mind, along with filling the belly. Dinner and orchestral music is also popular, especially if there are complicated instrumental movements. The bounty hunter shared the rest of the deserts with the other two wives. She gave a detailed description of the evening, including the fact that she was able to get the information that the Selkath were looking for. She also gave them a detailed description of the outfits the three Togruta women were wearing, so that it was easy to nurse their children. Everything she shared, made the other wives hope more and more that they will be able to go. So there were hugs all around the breakfast table, and kisses for their husband, when the one wife announced that they could go. The bounty hunter went straight to Madam Santhe's office to make her report. Madam Santhe was pleased that she had a good time. She was also grateful that Shaak was considerate enough to tell her about the blanket, and how Andriel made sure the Sith would not get their hands on it. She asked her when she was planning on leaving for Manaan. The bounty hunter said that she was hoping to be ready to depart that afternoon. Madam Santhe was pleased to hear that the family had accepted the Togruta invitation, to attend their feast. Madam Santhe hoped that if they can find nice ways for them to be stimulated as a family, they were less likely to want to return to Cerea, and the wives were more likely to stay and work, after their husband passed away. She called the head of security and asked him to speak with the Togruta elders. She wants a small undercover security team to accompany the Cereans when they go to the Togruta feast, but the Togruta are sharp enough to spot them. So if he arranges things with the Togruta up front, than no toes will get stepped on.

At the hanger, the wives discussed the best way to protect the ship, if it is forced out of hyperspace by pirates. They don't want to connect conventional armament, because it would interfere with their test equipment. They don't want the ship to remain unarmed, because it is possible for one of the newer starfighters to keep up with it, keeping it from jumping back into hyperspace, and eventually destroy their ship. They decide to mount three mines on its underbelly. They are inert while mounted, and only become active when released. They expect the pirate starfighters to be trailing behind their ship, when the mine explodes, when triggered by a starfighter. They expect pirates will back off, because they will not know what caused the explosion, allowing their ship to jump into hyperspace, and escape. The wives presented their proposal to the department head. He liked that there would be no interference to their sensitive equipment. He contacted Madam Santhe, because they would need her approval, and told the women to go ahead. The one wife noticed that her husband was aroused, watching his bounty hunter wife in her bounty hunter outfit, climbing aboard their research ship. She was going to have fun with him tonight.

When Captain Richard exited the bridge, to grab himself a bite to eat, he was surprised to see a very sad Krillgan, sitting in front of the door to his mother's cabin. He asked Krillgan what was wrong. He saw that the sad little boy, was trying real hard not to cry. "My parents are playing in mother's cabin, and they won't let me play with them. I can hear music, and sometimes it sounds like fighting. I think they are playing Hutt Wars. They know that I like playing Hutt Wars with father, and soon I will be as good as him. Why won't they let me play?" The Captain extended his hand to Krillgan. He took the Captain's hand with one hand, with the other he wiped the tears from his eyes. "You know as Captain, it is my responsibility to know about everything that is happening on my ship. I can assure you, that your parents are not playing Hutt Wars. They both love you very much, and would never think of playing Hutt Wars without you." The Captain was not sure if three people could play Hutt Wars together. Krillgan felt much better after hearing the Captain's reassurance, and walked hand in hand with the Captain, to the staff lounge.

"Did you know that it is very important for parents, to be able to play by themselves from time to time? They help to give energy to one another, so that they can be better parents to their children."

Krillgan wanted his parents to have lots of energy, they were more fun to play with when they are not tired. Krillgan decided he wanted something to eat as well, he handed the Captain his selection, so he could warm it up for him. When they sat down to eat, the Captain asked Krillgan, if he could tell him a secret? Krillgan nodded yes, even though he did not know what a secret was. "Sometimes, when parents play together, they start a baby growing."

Captain Richard had overheard Andriel and Chitrah talking to Krillgan one day. They were talking about the prophecy they were given about having more children. He knew that Krillgan really wanted to have a brother and sister. He suspected that part of the reason was because Krillgan had no other children to play with. He watched as Krillgan got down on the deck, after finishing his meal, and started playing with his blocks. He was very creative, he would join them together, making an interesting design. Then he would zap them, and they would all fall apart. He would start all over again, making something new. When he had used up all the blocks, zap, he would start again. The Captain was hoping that the children where he was taking them, would accept him, and play with him, even though it was obvious that he was an outsider. After watching Krillgan for a lot longer than he intended, he decided that he would go take a nap. There was excellent soundproofing between his cabin and Andriel's. So he would not be able to hear anything that was going on in there.

Chitrah let Andriel shower first, now that their passion for each other was spent. They were both concerned about Krillgan. He was not happy when they made him leave. He had let them have alone times before, but this time he resisted leaving. They were concerned, that being cooped up on this ship for so long, was finally getting to him. Andriel wanted to spend some time with him, to remind him that he was still very important to her. Then she would spend some alone time with him. When Andriel walked into the staff lounge, Krillgan dropped the blocks he had in his hands, and jumped up, and rushed towards Andriel. Andriel thought she was going to get a hug from him. Instead he lifted her blouse, and put his head against her tummy. The startled Andriel asked him, why he did that? He told her that the Captain had told him a secret. That sometimes when parents play together they start a baby. Andriel blushed. When Krillgan could not sense any new life, he pulled his head away from her tummy in disappointment. Then he looked at his mother and asked, "What's a secret?"

Andriel decided that she needed to use this as a teaching moment. She took Krillgan by the hand, and led him to a chair in the staff lounge, and sat him down. She sat down on the chair right next to his, and twisted, so she was looking right at him. "Before I tell you about secrets, there is something else I need to teach you. Do you remember how upset I was, when I found out that the two ladies had touched my clothes without asking me?" Krillgan remembered. Since that day he has always asked his mother's permission to touch her clothes, whenever he needed to move them aside, when he was looking for something. So he nodded his head yes.

"It is even more upsetting to a woman, if you touch her body without asking."

He asked her why?

"When you touch a woman's body without first asking. They think you want to hurt them. Because they know that a nice man would ask first."

Krillgan liked that she was calling him a man.

"Did I upset you just now?"

"No, because I knew that you would not hurt me. But you did surprise me."

"Does that mean I have to ask if I can touch you before giving you a hug?"

"Andriel told him No. He has her permission to give her a hug whenever he wants. Because that is a special form of touching."

Krillgan told her that she has permission to give him hugs whenever she wants. So she knelt before his chair and gave him a long hug.

After she sat back down, she told Krillgan that where he asks permission is also important. She told him that if he asks her permission in the crew lounge to touch her tummy, she will almost always say no. But if he asks her in their cabin, when they are getting ready for bed, she will usually say yes. He asked her, why she did not want him to touch her tummy here? She told him that some people, when they know that she has given permission to one person, they think that they have permission as well, and that can be bad. She does not want everyone on the crew thinking that it is okay to touch her tummy.

"Does father have to ask you permission, before he touches you?"

"Yes he does! But there are some special touching, like hugs, and taking my hand, that he knows that he already has permission."

"Are there more rules I need to know, as I get older?"

Andriel told him that there are.

"Growing up is harder than I thought."

Andriel told him that it was usually hard when you first learn a new rule, but after you have practised it for a while, you do it without even thinking about it.

Then she told him about secrets. She told him how when someone tells you something that is a secret, it means that you are not supposed to tell anyone else. Krillgan was upset with himself.

"Does that mean I wasn't supposed to tell you?"

"Children should not keep secrets from their parents, because sometimes bad people will do something bad to children, and say that it is their secret. But the parents needs to know."

"So it was okay that I told you?"

"Yes it is okay. Besides your father and I already knew that secret."

Krillgan felt better. The Captain was good to him, and he did not want to upset the Captain. Andriel asked if there was anything he wanted them to do together. Krillgan understood that the teaching time was over. He told her he was okay, and went back to playing with the blocks.

When Chitrah finished his shower, he sat on the bed, wondering what he could do with his son that was both different, and challenging. Something they had never done before. He remembered the simulator program he had downloaded onto his computer of the laser turret, while they were on that old freighter. Where he learnt the best way to defend the freighter from the pirates. He was sure that he could also find simulator programs for ships, and even starfighters. They could learn to fly those ships together, and when they were good at it. He could connect Andriel's computer to his, and they could shoot it out. On the way back to his cabin, he saw that Andriel was talking to Krillgan, about something. So he tried to be as quiet as possible, not to distract them. In his cabin, he got out his computer, and started searching for simulator programs. He tried to find the newest ones, hopefully of a ship that was still being used today. When he had a good selection. He looked out his cabin door. Krillgan was playing with his blocks, while Andriel was watching. Chitrah walked into the crew lounge. He told Krillgan that he wanted to learn to be a pilot, did he want to learn with him? Krillgan dropped his blocks, and stood up. He told his father that he wanted to be a pilot as well. Chitrah sat down, and had Krillgan sit on his lap. He opened his computer in front of them. He showed Krillgan the simulator programs he had found, and asked him to pick one. Andriel was glad that Chitrah had found something new to do with Krillgan. This should make the rest of the trip much easier.

Whenever they practised flying starfighters, Coris would watch them for a while, then tell them how many of that particular starfighter he had blown up. Krillgan always told him, that he would not have been able to blow it up, if he was flying it. Coris would laugh and pat him on the head. Then he would tell him that he hopes he never becomes a pirate. Because he does not like pirates he can't shoot down. Krillgan would smile, because he knew that Coris did not like any pirates.

Pirates! The Cerean swore. There were four fighters and their support ship. The closest was an Mk VI Interceptor. Not very far behind were two Sith Fighters produced by Revan's Star Forge. They were light, they were fast, but they lacked adequate armour. Not far behind was an IL-5 Ocula, which the Sith renamed Skybolt. If it came close enough to launch its missiles, she was dead. When she left Lianna, she had agreed to take the Perlemain Trade Route as far as Taanab. Then fly through open hyperspace to Manaan. This should give them lots of data, on how well the new hyperspace drive worked in a hyperspace-lane, and how well it performs in open hyperspace. She would only need to cross one hyperspace lane on the way to Manaan. But all this data was useless if she did not survive. They had forced her out of hyperspace where the Perlemain Trade Route bent towards Taanab. There was nothing out here for her to run to. The starfighters were closing on her much faster than expected, and were already shooting at her. She ignored their calls to surrender her ship. They must know someone who is very good at tweaking in-system drives to be able to reach the speeds they were moving at. They were in a staggered line behind her. Fortunately her shields were holding. She had to act now while the Skybolt was still out of missile range.

She released the first mine. The Interceptor flew right past it. Fortunately for her the Sith Fighter right behind him did not. The force of the blast caused the Interceptor to go into a crazy spin. If the pilot was not dead, he was unconscious, and no longer a threat in this fight. The second Sith Fighter was shredded when it flew through the debris created by the explosion. Exploding as well. The Skybolt was able to avoid the debris, and broke off the attack, because they did not know what she did, to take out the three starfighters. She decided not to continue on to Taanab, in case there are more pirates up ahead. She was lucky with that first mine. Now she only had two left. She wanted to save them for her trip home.

She took the time to recalibrate the new hyperspace drive, and input the new co-ordinates. Her only concern was that she would be coming closer to the Hapes Cluster than she would like to.

When the bounty hunter landed on Manaan, she had a much better reception, than she had the previous time. This time the Selkath workers at the Spaceport bowed to her in greeting. They knew that if she came back, it was because she had information for the elders. She bowed back to acknowledge their greeting. She saw one of them run off to warn the elders, and one of the workers approached her, offering to lead her to the elder's home. She gratefully accepted, with all the paths going through the piles of rubble, it would be easy to take the wrong turn, and end up on the wrong side of this huge raft. She had not been here long enough to establish her sense of direction.

When she arrived at the elders, she was warmly received, and offered a cup of seaweed tea, while they waited for the rest of the elders to show up. When they came in, they greeted her as one of their own. When everyone was present, the elder in whose home they were in, asked her what information, she was bringing them. She told them that Andriel does indeed have three mothers. The Devaronian mother who bore her and raised her on Deysum III, the one she had to leave because she was forced to marry outside of her people. Her second mother is a human, on Yitabo. She bonded with her, and gave her life stability, in a critical time of her marriage. Her third mother is also Devaronian. Andriel was pregnant, and seeking to be part of a Devaronian clan, so that her baby would have the emotional stability to grow up healthy. On Eriadu she found a broken community. She found an emotionally spent grandmother. That was hoping she could be the mother figure her granddaughter needed.

Even though they did not have the resources to look after her. She brought healing and hope to a people who were just clinging to life. While she was there, the community started to rebuild, families were reunited, and a new clan was formed. Her baby had all the emotional stability it needed and more.

The Selkath were not expecting such a detailed report. They should have, since they asked a Cerean to find this information for them. The elders were very happy to find out that Andriel had three mothers, and that they were all important in her life. As payment they presented the Cerean Bounty Hunter a bottle of Kolto. It was not a very big bottle, but to the Cerean it was huge. She trembled as she accepted the bottle from the elder. This was the life of her husband she was holding in her hands. The elder knew that she was married by her reaction. She asked if it was possible for her to come back, and purchase more Kolto when this bottle was used up. The elder put his hand on her shoulder. "You are now a friend of the Selkath. The Selkath always look after their friends. We will always have Kolto available for you, and at a very reasonable price." The Cerean bowed repeatedly to all the elders that were present, before she left. The elders knew they had given her the right reward. The Selkath workers at the spaceport, knew she had given the elders good information. Because they saw her walking to her ship, holding a small bottle of Kolto to her heart, with tears in her eyes. After she left, one of the elders pointed out that having three mothers is not the only part of the prophecy that needs fulfilling, the prophecy also says that she would cause her husband to spill his seed into the sea. The elder's wife spoke up, "She definitely did that." The others were stunned, and asked her to explain herself. She said, "On the first day they were here. After taking Krillgan for a walk. They sent him here by himself for dinner. Krillgan explained that he knew they wanted to be alone, because they were breathing funny." This caused most of the elders and all of their wives to smile. She said that when they came home, she could smell the smell of sex on their bodies. "Andriel asked her a peculiar question while they were eating their dinner. She asked if the Firaxan Sharks ever came into the swimming area. So I knew where they had been. Very early in the morning, before anyone had gone to bathe. I went down to the landing to wash away the evidence of their previous night's activities. The landing was damp, so everything washed off easily." One of the wives asked if there was much to wash off. She answered by saying that they are a young healthy couple. They even had sex in their bedroom, after Krillgan was fast asleep. They only knew this because both she and her husband were listening for it. They were very respectful, and very quiet. After they came back from bathing, Andriel came up to me and quietly thanked me. She told me that the previous evening, before coming back to our home, she wanted to jump into the water and bathe, but her husband grabbed her arm and pulled her back. He told her that there was something in the water. Just after he said that, something large bumped the landing. They both grabbed their clothes, and rushed up the stairs. They did not stop to finish dressing until they reached the top.

After hearing her story, the one elder said she should not have done what she did, she has desecrated a holy site. The wives did not agree with him, but kept silent, since they did not know how to refute him. After a while, another elder spoke up. "She was right to do what she did. Or we would have desecrated the site." The other elders agreed with the second elder's opinion. The first elder was not upset. This was their way. He said what he said, so that another elder could either validate it, or correct it. Then they talked about what they should do now. They all agreed that the elder's home was now a holy site. It was a place of love, comfort, and peace. Anyone needing those three things in their lives should be allowed to come here, so that the home this family has blessed, can minister to them. They all agreed that the elder and his wife should continue to live here, because they helped to make this place what it is, so they should not be removed from its blessing. They also decided that they need to place two fish oil lamps on the landing. So that everyone would know it is also a holy place. It is a place blessed with procreation love. It is a place where couples who are having trouble conceiving, can go to meditate. All the elders agreed to this. One of the elders went outside and blew into a shell. The sound of the shell was repeated throughout Ahto City. When people started coming, the elder told the people that they need to prepare a feast. The Devaronian woman Andriel, is indeed the woman mentioned in the prophecy. They now have two holy sites to commemorate.

The Cerean had asked the elders, when they can expect to receive the blessings mentioned in the prophecy. The elder told her that he did not believe the blessings would begin until the woman's son Krillgan, will return. He was wrong, the blessing started just after the people knew of the two holy sites. Selkath who were feeling anxious or depressed, would come and sit all day in the elder's home. When it was time to leave, they all said a sense of peace came with them. The mental and emotional strength of their community increased. People were more willing to hear their neighbour out, rather than get into a verbal sparring match with them. At first couples that were having trouble conceiving started meditating on the landing after everyone had finished bathing. No one knew when it started, but couples who had trouble conceiving, would sneak down in the middle of the night, and make love. Most nights you would find one couple, some nights you found two. You could find many couples who would swear, that their child was conceived on that landing. It was only taboo if an unmarried couple was ever found there. They were cursed with infertility for the rest of their lives. The Selkath population experienced a slow but steady increase after the feast honouring Andriel.

On Lianna, it was late in the evening when the Cerean Bounty Hunter landed the experimental ship in front of the R&D hanger. She asked the ground crew to park it inside, than went off running for the married residence. This was unusual behaviour for a Cerean. Usually they will head inside and write up a report, while everything is still fresh in their minds. It was unusual enough, that the ground crew supervisor, included it in his report. The Cerean family had been informed that she had arrived. The husband was waiting near the door to their apartment. He wanted to take her right away to his bedroom. He was looking forward to undressing her, from her bounty hunter outfit. The other wives knew it was her turn. They had each experienced wonderful evenings, because he had been thinking about her outfit. Now it was her turn to reap the rewards, their husband wants to bestow on her.

She came home much earlier than the wives were expecting. Her husband took her hand to take her to his bedroom. Instead she dragged him to the family room where she knew the other wives were. The husband was perplexed, none of his wives had ever turned him down before. He reluctantly followed her, because she would not let him go. When she entered the family room, she held up the bottle of Kolto, so that everyone could see. "Look at what the Selkath gave me." One of the wives squealed in delight. They all rushed over. The husband asked if it was Kolto. The bond wife asked if she could get more. She told them that the Selkath elder said she was a friend of the Selkath. They promised to keep refilling it at a reasonable price. The bond wife kissed her on her lips. She told her, that if she could, she would make her the bond wife in her place. Then she went and kissed her husband. "We will have you for many more years than we could have ever hoped, because of your new honour wife." The husband smiled, "That means I get to spend many more nights with each of you." The other honour wives also kissed the bounty hunter on her lips, then they kissed their husband. They told him that the odds of one of his wives bearing him a child, has just gone from 23% to78%. There is a 50/50 chance that one of his wives will be pregnant before the end of the year. (They had recently celebrated their New Year.) The bounty hunter thought that the bond wife should be the first one to give her husband the life extending massage with Kolto. The bond wife, and the other honour wives, agreed with the bond wife, that the bounty hunter should give their husband the first massage, because this was her night to be with him, and also because she was the one who brought it to them. She asked the bond wife how often they need to give him a massage? She said she did not know. She only knew it was wasted if they tried to give him a massage every night. She would research it tomorrow. As the couple walked to the husband's bedroom, they overheard the bounty hunter telling her husband, that she gets to undress him first, then give him a massage. After that he can do whatever pleases him.

The next morning the entire Cerean family arrived together, late for work. All the wives offered their humblest apology, and promised that it would never happen again. The husband smiled, he hoped it did. The bounty hunter was told that Madam Santhe wanted to see her. When she appeared at her office door, Madam Santhe asked her to come in and sit down. While she was dealing with the papers in front of her. When she heard that the door was sealed, Madam Santhe put the papers down, and looked at the bounty hunter. "What is wrong? We have never heard of a Cerean not making sure her ship was properly secured, before leaving, and this morning your whole family was late for work." (How do you tell your boss, that your husband woke up this morning, wanting to make love to you? She had never heard of it happening before. She jumped out of bed, and told her husband that she was not the bond wife. She wrapped the bed sheet around her naked body, and ran to the kitchen, where she knew the other wives were preparing their breakfast. She ran up to the bond wife, and told her that their husband wants to make love to her this morning. "What should I do?" "You go back to your husband, like a good wife, and let him make love to you. You do want him to make love to you?" "Yes! But I am not the bond wife. I did not want you to be upset with me." She kissed her on the forehead. "You are a good honour wife, now go back to your husband before he changes his mind." This last comment caused the other two honour wives to start laughing. She laughed herself as she ran back to his bedroom. No, she did not want him to change his mind. The wives had to wait for them, because they were not allowed to eat, until he did. So she helped him to the kitchen after they made love, because he was tired again. She wanted him to have at least one bite to eat, so that the other wives would eat. She then asked the bond wife if she could be excused from the table, so that she can go shower. While they ate their breakfast, the other wives, also washed their husband down, so that he would not need to go take a shower. That is why they were all late.) She told Madam Santhe that they had an unexpected family issue that they had to deal with. Madam was not happy with the answer, "And last night." "I know your ground crew is very competent. I was away from my family for so long, I had to run back to them." Madam was not buying it. She did not like it when her employees withheld information from her, it shows lack of trust. "Can you tell me what the Selkath gave you as a reward?" "It was something for the family." Vagueness again. The Cereans are so detail orientated, one of their strengths when it comes to research. Madam Santhe unsealed the door, and told her she could go. After she left, Madam called the head of the R&D department, and asked him what was going on with the Cereans today? He said he wasn't sure. But the bond wife was researching something that is not on her list. "How is the ship?" "We are dismantling it right now. I think she had a run in with pirates. One of the mines is missing." "Make sure she writes up her report right away on the trip. I want to see it as soon as it is ready. Remind her that it should already have been on your desk." Pirates. The report's not ready. What is going on? She calls communication. "I want to see a copy of everything the Cerean bond wife, has looked at since she signed onto her computer this morning, and everything she will look at, until she breaks for lunch. Madam Santhe hates looking over her employee's shoulder. But it is a bad sign when they don't trust you. She has to do something about re-establishing their trust. She can only do that if she knows what has caused them to lose their trust in her.

Madam Santhe was impressed to find out that Kolto could extend a male Cerean's life by up to 15 years. Precious years to the wives, when their husbands are supposed to live such short lives. The Kolto needs to be applied on a regular bases, but not every day. It would make sense that the Selkath would give Kolto to a Cerean, who has brought them good news. They must be able to get more, if they are planning to use it on a regular bases for their husband. There must have been an unexpected side-affect that caused the family to be late this morning. This also means that they will need to take trips to Manaan, on a regular bases. Madam Santhe was confident, that she could now restore the Cerean family's trust in her. She was the last one to leave the office, when she went back to the palace that night. She hoped the Palace Secretary had nothing planned for her tonight. She just wants to have dinner, and a nice hot bath, before retiring tonight.

The next morning Madam Santhe asked that the Cerean Bounty Hunter be sent to her office again. When she came in, Madam Santhe sealed the door, and got up and sat in the chair beside her.

"The health and wellbeing of everyone who works for me is very important to me. Not just from the aspect, that if you are healthy, you will work harder, if you are sick your production drops. To me, you are my family. If you hurt, I want to know, so that we can do what we can to take the hurt away. If you have good news, I want to hear it, so that I can rejoice with you. You do not know how hurt I felt, when you did not tell me about the Kolto. The elixir of life for your husband. Instead of rejoicing with you, my heart was full of sorrow."

"I'm sorry. But you are rich and powerful. You are the Queen. We are but a small, insignificant, Cerean family. We are neither rich, nor powerful. It has always been, that the rich and powerful take the elixir of life, from those who aren't."

"Yes I am the Queen of Lianna. If I wanted Kolto, I could send my people to go get me some, and I have the wealth, that I could purchase more than you have. But it would be wasted on me. It will not extend my life like it will your husband. It would just sit there and collect dust. Though I am the Queen out there. In here I am Madam Santhe. Here you are my family. Would it be good for my family if everyone saw me steal from my own, when I know it will help them? I was happy when I found out that your husband will be with us for many more years. I can see that he loves each one of you. Even you the newest of his honour wives. I know that the bond wife is the strength of your family, and when your husband passes away, she will be the family head. But you bring something special to your family, something no other honour wife can."

"What is that?"

"You bring the blessing of Andriel."

The Cerean fell on her knees before Madam Santhe, just as she would, if she had wronged the bond wife. She had tears in her eyes, and bowed before her.

"Please forgive me, and please forgive my family. It was wrong to dishonour you. We do not deserve the kindness you show us."

Madam Santhe touched her on her head, as a bond wife would, to show she is forgiven. When the Cerean got back up, Madam Santhe handed her a fine linen handkerchief, so that she can wipe the tears from her eyes. She told the Cerean that she needs to go back and discuss with the wives, how Santhe Corporation, can best take advantage of their regular trips to Manaan.

"Just as we did, by testing out the new hyperspace drive. You should also ask the bond wife, if you need us to install a refrigerated safe into your apartment. I'm not sure what the best way to store Kolto is."

When the Cerean stood up, she gave Madam Santhe a long hug, than she thanked her for her patience and understanding. When she arrived back in her department, she told the other wives about her meeting that morning with Madam Santhe. They all turned red faced, when they heard how she really wanted to help them. The bond wife, told all the other wives to follow her. They came up to the open door of Madam Santhe's office. The bond wife knocked on her door. When she looked up, all the wives, bowed to her, and the bond wife said, "Thank you!" Madam Santhe stood up from her desk and bowed back. "You're Welcome."

Krillgan, it turned out, was a natural pilot. It did not matter which starfighter he chose, when he went head to head against his father, he would always win. Fred had been talked into going against him, and had lost as well. Only Captain Richard was a match for him. But Krillgan would still take three out of five battles. The Captain had started sitting him on his lap, when he was in the pilot's chair. Letting Krillgan handle the hand controls, while he handled the foot controls. Krillgan loved this new responsibility he was given, it made him feel like he was a grownup. Andriel appreciated that he no longer lamented, that there were no other children for him to play with. From Andriel's perspective, he had discovered a ship full of them. He no longer asked to touch her tummy, after she and Chitrah had one of their play times. What she tried not to show, was that she was tired of living on this ship. She wanted to walk on the ground again, if only for a short time. Chitrah felt the same way she did, but he tried to encourage her. He would tell her again, that the Captain knew what he was doing, even though no one else did.

Coris was actually dreading the day that they would have to leave, he very much enjoyed Chitrah's martial-arts classes. He even persuaded Chitrah to let him wear his practice suit, and battle Andriel. He won't do that again. She is one tough lady.

The next stop was on a Sith controlled planet. It was one of the planets that they took over because of the treaty. They have had no problems with the local populace, so the troops stationed there are fairly relaxed. The Captain told them that the important thing they have to do, is keep the Imperial Troopers off of the ship. Captain Richard went over what he wanted each one of them to do. The crate that they were dropping off was almost as wide as the ramp. He told Pula, and Coris, to use it as a wall, if the Imperial Troopers approach the ship. Bikto was to stand at the top of the ramp, at the communications panel. He would signal the bridge, when to lower or raise the ramp. He did not want the Imperials hearing them giving voice commands. He wanted Andriel and Chitrah standing in the entrance to each of the cargo bays. That way they would be in position to pull Pula, and Coris, up off the ramp, if the Imperials start shooting. He wanted Krillgan to standby, in one of the cargo bays, in case someone was injured. But he could only come out once the ramp was closed. Coris told everyone that he wanted Andriel on his side of the ramp, because he thinks she is stronger. Even Krillgan laughed. Captain Richard said that he would be taking the pilot's chair, because next to Krillgan, he was the best pilot they had. Coris ruffled Krillgan's hair, and reminded him to never be a pirate. Fred would be taking the captain's chair. Because he can monitor the whole ship from there, and issue the voice commands, to lower and raise the ramp, as Bikto signals him.

When the Captain was satisfied that everyone knew their role. He sent everyone to bed, because they would be landing in the morning. Fred told the Captain to get some rest, because their second best pilot needs to be awake and alert. The Captain took his advice. Next morning, the Captain guided the ship to the surface as gently as possible, since he and Fred were the only ones strapped in.

Captain Richard instructed the computer to go to assault mode. So that no alarms would sound because the passengers were not in their seats. Assault mode was for when you were landing on the surface with both cargo bays crammed tight with Planetary Assault Troopers. It also prevented the computer from powering down any systems upon landing, like it normally did.

Right next to where they were assigned to land, was a squad of Imperial Troopers. They were pretty bored, and when the squad leader saw the unusual ship land in his sector, he decided he wanted to see what it looked like inside. When the ramp started to lower. He led his squad to the ramp. The ship's crew unloaded a crate right in his way. He told them to move it aside, they were coming aboard their ship. Pula said "No". The squad leader was so surprised, he stopped in his tracks. He ordered them again to move it aside, because he was coming aboard their ship. Both Pula and Coris, crossed their arms in front of their chests. This time Coris said, "No You're Not!" Then the ramp started to rise. Coris told the squad leader that they had promised the owner of the crate that they would bring it to this planet. It was up to him to see that the crate was turned over to its rightful owner.

The squad leader slipped his blaster rifle off of his shoulder, with his squad doing likewise. He ordered them to drop the ramp, so that they could come aboard the ship. Pula bent sideways, so that they could see his face, and smiled. "Have a nice day." Then both he and Coris jumped up off of the ramp. The squad heard that the ship was almost at full power. The whole squad ran for cover, and the squad leader radioed the traffic controller that they have a ship in their sector of the spaceport, that refused to let them aboard, and was now departing the planet. The traffic controller ordered a starfighter wing to scramble for interception. Five pilots scrambled to board their brand new Blade Class Starfighters, recently shipped from Lianna. They were a little out of practise scrambling, because they never had to do it in real life before. They all thought this was a great way to break in their brand new ships.

The freighter was already in the upper atmosphere, before the starfighters lifted off. Coris had scrambled to his favorite position, the lower gun turret in the tail of the ship. He had strapped himself into the turret, hanging upside down, many times before. He knew that it would not be until they left the planet's atmosphere, that the ship's artificial gravity, would be powerful enough to start counter acting the pull of the planet's gravity. Pula had climbed up into the top gun turret in the tail section, and was unaffected by the planet's gravity. Bikto had reached the engineer's station, and strapped himself in. Fred asked the Captain if he wanted him to take the gun turret above the crew's lounge. The captain told them that Coris and Pula can handle anything the Imperials throw at them. He then asked Fred where the passengers were. Fred told them that the computer shows them as being strapped into their seats in the crew's lounge.

The starfighters did not have a chance. Coris took out three of them. Pula took out one and badly damaged the other. When the damaged starfighter turned tail and headed for the planet. Pula and Coris, both cheered. When everyone else heard the cheering, they knew that the fighting was over. The Captain ordered the computer to step down from assault mode. This way the computer could put any systems not being used, to sleep mode. Every one headed to the crew's lounge. They all wanted to celebrate. Captain Richard came out of his cabin with some bottles in his hand. They were chilled, and he was saving them for a special occasion. He told everyone he had new ale and regular ale, "Pick your poison." Chitrah asked the captain if it was Marley's Brew. The Captain laughed and asked him how he knew. Chitrah told him he just guessed. He and Andriel both took a bottle of Brew. Andriel told Krillgan that he can celebrate too, and would share with him. Krillgan asked, if it really was poison? Andriel told him that if you drink too much, it can be. If it is not made properly made, it can be. If it is not properly stored, it can be. But he does not have to worry because he has Devaronian blood in him. It is only people like his father that have to worry.

Fred asked, what she meant by that? Chitrah told him that it meant that his little son, could drink him under the table.

The Captain had seen too many men, tricked into trying to outdrink a Devaronian. He agreed with Chitrah. Coris said he would like to see that, because he wanted to see Fred drunk. So did Pula, and Bikto. The Captain said there was not enough alcohol on the ship, for that type of challenge. The crew was only mildly disappointed, because they believed the little guy could do it. Fred felt like he had just dodged a blaster bolt.

Everyone decided to cook up some grub to have with their drinks. While they were doing that, Coris started telling everyone what had happened when the ramp lowered. When he told them about the whole squad pointing their blaster rifles at them. Krillgan asked him, if he was scared, because he could have been shot? Coris told Krillgan, that he wasn't worried about being shot, because he knew he would heal him, and he ruffled his hair. Pula broke in, "Shot nothing. We could have been killed."

"I was plenty scared. I'm surprised no one saw my knees knocking."

Everyone laughed, except Krillgan. He had not realised until now, that they really could have been killed. Weren't those starfighter pilots killed when Coris, and Pula destroyed their ships? Krillgan knew that he could heal injury, but he could not heal death. He quietly finished his meal. He wasn't hungry any more, but it was wrong to just throw it out.

Back on the Sith planet the Imperial Troopers had contacted the owner of the crate, to tell him his shipment had arrived. He looked very pleased and told them he will be right there. A squad of soldiers escorted him out onto the spaceport landing area to where the first squad was guarding the crate. When he saw his crate and no ship, he became very apprehensive and ran over to his crate.

"Where is the ship? Where is the Captain?"

"He left."

"Why did you let him leave, I need him."

"He left, because he did not want us aboard his ship."

"Why would you idiots try and go aboard his ship."

"Don't you know I need him?"

The poor merchant sat on the ground and started crying. The squad leader was embarrassed, he had never seen a grown man cry before. He asked the merchant, what was wrong? The merchant became very angry, "You want to know what's wrong? Do you really want to know what is wrong? I will tell you what is wrong. You just cost me more than a thousand credits. That is what is wrong. I needed the Captain to certify that this crate has been sitting in a warehouse these past few years. Without his certification, this product is almost useless."

The squad leader asked him to open the case. The merchant looked him straight in his face.

"You really are an idiot. Do I look like the type of person that walks around with tools in my pockets?"

One of the squad raised his blaster rifle to smash the crate open with its butt. The Merchant shouted, "Stop! I did not say it was worthless. I said it was almost worthless."

The squad leader sent one of his squad, to find tools to open the crate. When they opened the crate, and moved the protective material aside, they found it full of jars. The squad leader picked one up, and saw that it contained something that looked like furry eggs, inside a liquid. He asked the merchant what it was. The merchant told him, "They are pickled farm oysters. The longer they are pickled. The more credits they are worth, and these have been pickled for a long time."

The squad leader asked what farm oysters are?

"You must be a city kid, otherwise you would know that they are Nerf Testicles, pickled in 90 proof alcohol. You can only buy them in your higher end eateries." The merchant than handed him his card. The squad leader wanted to know why he was giving it to him. The merchant looked at him, "You must have been dropped on you head when you were born. This is the address to which you will have this crate delivered. Just so you know, I am on my way to speak to the Moff, about this."

The merchant turned and left. The squad that had escorted him out to the tarmac, followed him, with big smiles on their faces.

The squad leader turned to one of his men, and told him to go hire a couple of porter droids, to take this crate to this address. Then handed him the card. The Trooper asked how he was supposed to pay for it. The squad leader asked him, if he has any credits? He shook his head no. He turned to his squad, and asked if any of them had credits? They all shook their heads no. He told the Trooper to go to the vehicle pool, and find a vehicle, so that they can transport the crate to the address.

That evening when they had gone to bed. Krillgan asked his mother, if it was wrong for him to ask Coris if he was afraid, and to laugh when he said how brave he was, because Pula was right. They could have been killed, and he cannot heal dead people. Andriel sat up and drew him towards her, so that he was sitting between her legs, and she had both arms wrapped around him. She kissed him on his head, thinking that children his age should not have to think about things like that. She told him that he can only do, what he can do. He knew that she was crying for him, because he could feel her tears on his head. He fell asleep like that feeling very safe. When Andriel was too tired to hold him anymore because she was falling asleep. She gently laid him down on his side, and laid behind him, with one arm draped over him. He woke up in the middle of the night. He felt his head pressed against his mother's cheek, and he felt her arm envelope him. He went back to sleep, he was still safe.

When the Cerean Bounty Hunter returned to Manaan, she brought the other two honour wives with her. They both thought the elder's home was nicer than she described it. They had come along, because it was obvious that she was pregnant, and she might not be in any condition to travel, the next time they need to come for Kolto. What the two women did not know, but the elder suspected, was that they were also pregnant. Which is unheard of, for a Cerean family. The bond wife was alone with her husband, enjoying all the time she had with him. The bounty hunter had emptied the last of their Kolto, before leaving, so that she could continue his treatments, and deal with the side effects. She was actually hoping they would be home soon, because he was starting to tire her out.

When the Bounty Hunter introduced them to the elder and his wife, she let them know that they also are honour wives with the same husband. The elder assured her that if they come in her name, they will deal with them as if they were dealing with her. But if another Cerean comes to deceive them. They will not deal with them. The Cerean wives did not know how much credits to bring with them. They knew Kolto was scarce, so they all cleaned out their savings, and split the credits between them to carry. Their husband told them they were taking too much. He said they were overthinking it. If the Selkath call you a friend, then they will offer you a good deal. After the bounty hunter gave the elder her empty bottle, he disappeared, then returned a short time later. Her bottle was full. She asked him how much, and he quoted her a price. The other honour wives could not believe what he said, and asked him to repeat the price. The bounty hunter could afford it on her own, with just her researcher's salary, without the other honour wives' wages. She paid him. When he handed her the bottle, the three honour wives said, if your wife wasn't standing right there, we would have kissed you. His wife laughed and he smiled. This is a good family, they will have many blessings.

Madam Cothia turned pale when she saw the Rodian walk into the brothel. She did not care why he was there, she just knew that she had to get him out. It was a good thing it was not quite noon, and her girls were not up yet. She was sure they would go hysterical if they saw him. She went up to him and told him that he has to leave, they are not open yet. He complained that there were others already in the house. She told him that they were either staff, or guests that have taken one of their rooms for the night. He told her that he was just looking for his cousin. She told him, that if his cousin is who she thinks he is, than he might not want to stay in town. "His cousin skipped town, owing a lot of people a lot of money. We have laws that say that we can collect from family members. On second thought why don't you wait right here. I'm pretty sure I know someone who would want to talk to you."

"That's okay. I don't see my cousin anywhere. I'll just go look somewhere else."

He hurried out of the brothel.

Madam Cothia went up to one of the mercenaries sitting in the dining area. "How good are you at following someone?"

"I'm okay but my buddy at the other table is the best."

He called his buddy over, and told him that Madam Cothia has some work for him. He was a wiry fella, not the type of person you would think to take with you to a bar fight. There was not really anything about him that stood out. Madam Cothia smiled, he was perfect. She told him there was a Rodian male that had just left. She wants him followed, and she wants to know everything. He saluted her, and ran out the door.

When one of the mercenaries she had hired, to help defend the spaceport, came by to pick up lunch. She told him, that they should expect company tonight. He asked her, what made her think that? She told him that a Rodian had been by earlier, checking the place out. He said he was looking for his cousin. The only Rodian that has been on this planet, had connections to the Hutt's. She also told him that she sent someone out to tail him. He asked her if it was the skinny guy that works for this mercenary unit. She said yes, and he kissed her on the forehead. "Good girl! I'm sure our Commander will want to talk with you." Later that afternoon the mercenaries' Commander came by and asked Madam Cothia if the guy she sent after the Rodian was back yet? She told him he hadn't returned. He said he shouldn't be long, the Rodian just left the planet. They waited together, but no one showed up.

The Mercenary Commander had just stood up and told Madam Cothia to tell the Commander of this mercenary crew, that they have a man missing. When the guy came stumbling through the door. He was bleeding, it looked like he had been stabbed. A couple of mercenaries ran to help him. Two more slammed two dining tables together, and asked one of her girls to get fresh linen. She looked at Madam Cothia, who was racing for her room. She told her to, "Just do it." The young lady sprang to action. Madam Cothia grabbed two vials of Kolto, and burst into her lieutenant's room. Her lieutenant had just started undressing a client (first thing you do to make sure they are clean. If not you help them shower in the corner.) She told her to take the two vials to the apothecary, have him make up the first vial into the Kolto pacs for the med kits, the second vial should cover the cost. They need them right now, and she wants change. She told the shocked customer that she will send in another girl to look after him. He smiled, "Will she be purdy too?"

She told him that all her girls are purdy. Her lieutenant knew better to than to argue with Madam, especially when she is upset. The first girl Madam Cothia spotted, she asked her, if she had a customer? She said she didn't. She told her that there is a client in her lieutenant's room that needs looking after. She was about to tell Madam that she just saw her run by, then she smiled, the lieutenant never lets anyone use her room, now she can, and she won't be in trouble. Madam Cothia went back to the dining area, she wanted to know how the guy was doing. She saw the two mercenary Commanders talking. They weren't really Commanders, but that is what they preferred to be called, when they represent their mercenary group. She thinks one is a Sergeant, or was that Sergeant Major? The other was some sort of officer, maybe Captain. Do they have Captains in the army? Because it sounds like a navy rank. When she approached them, they stopped talking, and turned to her. They told her that he bled out a lot, but should be okay. She told them that she just sent one of her girls to the apothecary, to get a Kolto pac. The officer asked her if they really have any, because every time he checks, they are all out. She told him that she had overhead one of her customers say, that he just had a fresh supply come in. The officer said that he would stop by first thing in the morning and see if he has any left, they are really hard to come by. Then he told her that his man followed the Rodian to the new Wedding Chapel. First he wanted to go into the apartment, but was told he can't because their seamstress lives there. Then he wanted to check things out in the warehouse, and was told he can't because they are right in the midst of renovations. It was after that that the Rodian spotted him and ambushed him. "From the times he mentioned. We believe that he went straight back to his ship after the ambush." They wondered, what did he want with the Wedding Chapel? She told them that the Wedding Chapel used to be the Rodian's lair. The one who started this whole mess.

It was clear to the two Commanders. First the Hutts send a scout to see if they can recover any product, to cover the cost of the operation. Then they send the retaliatory force. The officer asked Madam Cothia if it was all right with her, if their two Mercenary Units combine for tonight, at no extra cost to her. He wants revenge for his man, and he has a man who is presently trying to nail down a contract, that would be easier to get, if their two units combine. Tonight might be a good test to see if they can work together. Madam told them that she has no problem, with them seeing if they can work together. Her lieutenant returned a short time later, and handed her a bag with the Kolto pacs in it, and the change. She told her that she was surprised how fast he could move, when he found out that they had a wounded man in their house. Madam Cothia handed her one of the pacs, to give to the Commanders. Then she told her who she sent to her room, to look after her customer. The lieutenant cringed, and thought, "Why her?" Madam Cothia went straight to the kitchen, and asked Chef, if she could store this bag in his cooler for a few days. Chef looked in the bag.

"You like your cold credits, do you?"

Madam forgot that the change was still in the bag. She reached in and took it all out. Chef said for only a couple of days? Madam Cothia raised her right hand, and said, "I promise."

The Captain instructed his men, to be ready for action at sundown. He then went with the Master Sergeant to inspect all of his preparations. He was impressed. The rest of the Master Sergeant's people were introduced to the Captain, and told that he would be co-ordinating things tonight. His crew was really happy. First they were going to have strong backup. Second, the chance of seeing action tonight was very high. The Captain really liked that the Master Sargent's own man took over spaceport traffic control, when the real traffic controllers went home for the night. That meant anyone landing their ship at night, will feel compelled to follow the traffic controller's instructions, when he answers their hails, because it would look too suspicious if they didn't. That means that when the troops exit the ship, and go for cover, they won't suspect that they are snuggling up to anti-personnel mines.

When the Captain returned to the brothel to check his men, he told his best scout to stand down. He knew he was feeling better after the Kolto pac, but he needs him fully healthy for their next assignment. He was sure it would not hurt him, if Madam's girls keep him company. A merc came up to him and tells him, "I wish I could stay. They're all so gosh darn purdy."

In space, the Rodian docks his ship with the assault ship. He gives his scouting report to the Red Demon's CO. He tells him that there are only three mercenaries, providing backup to spaceport security. He did not know about the two that were sleeping. He also told them that the crews looking after freight storage at the spaceport have gotten lazy, which is another sign that the Rodian is not there. They should have plenty of cover all over the spaceport. He said that the Hutts are going to be pissed, because he could not find the Rodian, who had promised them all those hours of videos he had recorded of the women at the brothel. The Rodian's warehouse has also being converted to a Wedding Chapel. So if anyone found the memory chips they have either been destroyed, or sold them to another Consortium. The CO, thanked him and reminded him that he will get paid when they return from this mission.

The CO inherited the Red Demon unit from his Commander when he perished on assignment, near the end of the Great Galactic War. He was a male Devaronian. He looked like a Red Demon, and he fought like a Red Demon. So that is how they got their name. Of the original 20 that started this unit, only four of them remain. Not to take away from the new guys. They fight just as hard as the guys he started with. He tried to talk the Hutts into letting him leave half his men behind. This is over kill. They insisted. They said they were paying for the whole unit, so they want the whole unit to go. They are paying for results, not so half of them could take a vacation, when they should be working. The good thing is, you can't argue with the pay, or with the bonuses. If everything goes according to schedule, they should be hitting the spaceport at three in the morning local time.

Spaceport security did not like being decoys. They understood the importance of maintaining their scheduled rounds. But each one of them has gone to the bathroom three times more often than they normally do. The mercenaries call it nervous bowel syndrome, than laugh. They wouldn't laugh so hard if they felt like the moving targets at a carnival shooting gallery. At least they all knew their part, as soon as you hear something explode, hit the deck and keep your head down. "They forget that we hear something explode every time we go to the bathroom."

The assault ship pilots were surprised to hear a response, when they made their regulation call to spaceport traffic control. They checked to make sure they were broadcasting on the right frequency. Most spaceports this size do not have 24 hour traffic control. But the guy spoke the talk, and directed them to one of the landing sites, that they have of the spaceport layout. Regulations say you have to land were they tell you.

The mercenary pretending to be the spaceport traffic control, radioed the captain, to let him know that the ship that is coming in, has all the indications that it is an assault ship. The Captain ordered him to hold his position, until the fighting starts. If another ship shows up, and he is not there to direct them, it could spook the pilots of the assault ship, and he might not land. Or he might land in another location. Then they would be in big trouble. The attackers would have the advantage. The guys out on patrol all saw the landing lights of the ship coming in. Every one of them wanted to run for cover. It took all the courage they could muster to keep walking their beat. All the defending mercenaries watched as the ship touched down. The ramp lowered, and the attacking mercenaries, dressed from head to toe in black, all wearing night vision goggles, silently race down the ramp, and took cover behind stacked crates of freight. All of their hearts were beating at least twenty times per minute faster, because of all the adrenaline pumping through their bodies. One of the attackers raised his hand. Probably their Commanding Officer, not knowing it was the signal the defenders were waiting for. They detonated all of the anti-personnel mines they had attached to the fake crates of cargo. Just like that, two thirds of the attackers were wiped out. The rest were all injured. The pilots took off as soon as they heard the explosions, raising the ramp as they gained altitude. As one of them put it, "They weren't paid to die." The surviving attackers did their best to try and afflict as much damage as possible on the defenders. But they were in a hopeless situation. They were pinned down, with nowhere to manoeuvre. They could not retreat because their ride just took off. The defenders knew what they were doing. Some of them were moving, to where the attackers would be fully exposed. There was certainly more than three of them. One of the attackers stood up and started blasting away with a blaster rifle in each hand. Soon the others joined him. This was their last stand. The defenders would know that they were men who knew how to die. The defenders were just grateful, that they shortened the inevitable. After they were taken out, the Captain ordered a ceasefire, and did a headcount. They did not lose anyone. He told them to help the injured, and get back to the brothel. Remember they were never there. The Captain and Master Sergeant removed all evidence of them ever being there. They shock hands with the officers in charge of spaceport security, and thanked them for their cooperation. Then disappeared. It is security's job to dispose of the dead bodies.

At the brothel they were putting tables together again, for the wounded. Though no one was killed, they did have critically wounded. One of the ladies from the original five man unit took a blaster bolt in the left side, right in the seam of her body armour, and three from the eight man unit that combined with them. Their Medic asked Madam Cothia, if she had anymore Kolto pacs? She asked him how many he needed. He figured three would be sufficient for now, and another two tomorrow. She ran to the kitchen and removed three from the bag in the cooler. When she handed them to the medic, he noticed right away how cold they were. He warmed one up with his hands, and the other two he put in two different pockets, so that they would be warm by the time he needed to use them. The medic thought that the woman's injuries had the potential for being the most severe. When he removed the torso portion of her body armour, he found she was wearing nothing underneath, just like most mercenaries. It made it easier for medics to deal with wounds, without having to pick out melted pieces of fabric from the wound. Between gritted teeth, the Sergeant commented, that she was happy they had not damaged her two girls, or she would have been very upset. The two privates from her unit were watching what was happening to her. They had never seen her without some sort of covering over her upper torso, in the more than two years they had worked with her. "We also would have been upset if your two girls had been damaged." The Sergeant asked her friend and fellow Sergeant, who was at her side, if she could get rid of these two clowns. So she threw an armoured glove at them, and told them to go stare at one of Madam's girls. They told her that all of her girls were busy helping where ever they could. "Besides what Sarge has, is just as beautiful as anything the girls have."

"You don't want her husband catching you ogling his wife, or you will be in big trouble."

Just than the Captain and Master Sergeant walked into the brothel, having put away the extra gear they used for the operation. The two privates made themselves scarce. The medic was very surprised to find the Sergeant's injuries were not as severe as he first thought. The Sergeant said that she believed it was because she was shot more from the front rather than the side, so it was only a glancing blow. The medic agreed with her, otherwise she would be breathing from her side as well as her mouth right now. He used an aerosol spray to numb the wound that also contained an antiseptic. He used a scalpel to cut away the charred pieces of flesh, because they could interfere with healing, and could also be a source of infection. He covered the wound with artificial skin from his Medi-kit, and gave her an injection of the Kolto solution from the Kolto pac that Madam had given him. He told her that there may be some scarring, and definitely discomfort as she heals. He needs to give her another injection, later that day, to help with her healing. The Master Sergeant had gone with the Captain to check on the other wounded, when he saw the Medic working on his wife. He came over to her just in time to grab a hold of the bed sheet his wife was laying on, to help carry her to a room. He saw the nice new bandage the Medic had taped over the wound. He was grateful that Madam's girl had covered her with another sheet before leading them to the bed where they could put her down to rest. The Sergeant grabbed the arm of the young lady before she could leave the room, and asked her if she could find a comfortable chair for the Master Sergeant to sit on, at his wife's bedside. She was sure he would fall asleep in it. The young lady was surprised to find out that they were married. She knew they were good friends, as everyone in their unit was. It was a shock to think that they were married, yet they still came here with their unit. That would explain why she never saw him with any of the girls. The Master Sergeant helped the Sergeant remove the rest of his wife's body armour. When they were finished the Sergeant made her friend swallow a pill the Medic gave her, so that her friend would sleep and heal. Then she left the two of them alone. At the same time the young lady returned with a chair that she hoped would be comfortable enough. When she entered the room, she saw the Master Sergeant standing at his wife's side, holding her hand, and she had heard him say, "I love you."

The medic came up to the merc who took two blaster bolts to the chest. The chest piece on his body armour was completely shatter, he told the guy he was one lucky guy. The merc told him that he did not feel lucky. The medic told him that if the blaster bolts had hit him a couple of centimeters closer together, he would be dead right now. They tried to take his body armour off, but he had a lot of fragments imbedded in his skin. The guys helping the merc who was shoot in the arm, came over and asked him to look at his buddy again. His arm does not look right. The medic came over and swore. He should have looked more closely the first time. The blaster bolt took out a section of the bone in his arm. It was the body armour that was keeping the arm rigid. Now that they removed the armour it was just hanging there, and he was in a lot of pain. He probably needs a pin in it at the least, he might need it completely rebuilt. He had asked the Captain for a scanner, so that he could detect wounds like this. When the guys first come in, they are still so pumped up on adrenaline, that they think they only have a scratch. He told his buddies that they have to keep him lying down, they can't let him sit up. They are going to have to remove all his body armour, and get a regular pair of pants on him, they will have to change into civvies themselves. He then walked up to Madam Cothia, and asked if they have a trauma clinic, or hospital, with a bone surgeon. When the Captain saw the medic walking towards Madam Cothia, he thought he should go listen in. Madam Cothia told him that there was a hospital on the other side of the spaceport, but she did not know if they had a bone surgeon. She would give them a call. When she left the Captain asked him what was wrong. He told him that the mercenary with the arm injury has a piece of bone missing, which he did not detect because he does not have a scanner. He will need a pin in his arm at the least. There is a chance that the bone is fragmented. He is in a lot of pain, but he has to go into surgery right now. So he cannot give him anything, in case it interferes with what they need to give him for the surgery. When Madam Cothia came back, she told them that the hospital does have a trauma unit, and they have a surgeon on call. She told them to call him in, because they are sending them a patient whose arm is in bad shape. He put a quick splint on the guy to stabilize his arm. So it would not hurt as much on the way to the hospital, and to make it easier for the surgeon to examine him. The Captain asked Madam Cothia, what a common family name was around here. Madam did not know, so she gave him her maiden name. Try Brennan. The Captain came up to the injured man's buddy. He reminded them not to use their real names in the hospital. "If they ask you your names, tell them you are Ben Brennan. If they ask why you all have the same names, say your cousins. No, better yet, say that you are all brothers. Same father different mothers. That will keep them from bothering you, but give them a chance to gossip amongst themselves. The Captain handed him 100 credits. Give them this if they ask for medical insurance, and tell them you can get more insurance if it's needed."

They carried him on the bed sheet out to Madam's skiff. Madam told the droid to take them to the hospital, than come right back. The medic went back to working with the chest wound patient. While he was gone, they removed all the other pieces of his body armour. The medic went to work with some tweezers, to pull out all the fragments of body armour he could find from his skin. One of Madam's girls asked him, if she found a pair of tweezers, did she want her to help. He said he would not mind, if what she saw did not bother her. She told him she was raised on a farm, and has seen a lot worse. The merc asked the medic if he could hurry up. He was getting cold laying their naked. The medic told him that the cold was helping him right now, and he needs to keep still. With her help, he was able to get all the fragments out much faster. He got out his aerosol can and sprayed his entire chest, to numb the pain and to provide the antiseptic. He got out his scalpel to cut away the small amount of charred flesh at the impact point of each blaster bolt. He told the mercenary that he has good news and bad news for him. The good news is that he will now have what looks like four nipples, the bad news was that they were not symmetrical, so it will be a major turnoff for the guys. He told the medic that he did not care about the guys. What will the gals think? He told him to keep his shirt on and they won't even notice. The young lady put her hand over her mouth, because she was afraid she might say something, or laugh. The medic only put small pieces of synthetic skin, over the flesh where he removed charred skin. He did not want to put any dressing over the burns. As there was excessive bruising all over his chest, under the burns, so only a body wrap would work. He thought it was best to leave it exposed. He injected small amounts of the Kolto solution all around the burns. Then he gave the mercenary some medication to knock him out. He then told his two buddies that they need to get some padded leather strapping from the Captain. They need to keep their friend completely immobilised for the next two days, so he can heal faster. He showed them where the one leather strap should go across his shoulders pinning him to the bed, and where the other strap should go across his hips to keep him from moving about. One of them had to stay awake with him at all times, to keep an eye on him. In case he squirms while he is sleeping, and the leather strap across his shoulders slips up, and chokes him to death. He told them that if they were having trouble staying awake, send for help. He told them that it would be okay to put a blanket on him, but only up to the leather strap at his hips. His chest must remain uncovered. He will be coming around at a regular intervals to keep him medicated, so he remains unconscious for the next two days. The medic next looked at the patient with the leg injury. Like he suspected it was a clean through and through. There was partial cauterisation, as the blaster bolt passed through, sealing some of the blood vessels, so there was minimal seepage of fluids from the wound. There were no major arteries severed, and there was enough seepage of fluids that he did not have to go in and cut the cauterised flesh away. The Kolto should encourage muscle tissue growth to fill in the hole, rather than the scar tissue that would normally grow in a wound like this. He will need a cane to get around for the first month, while the new muscle tissue connects properly with the muscle tissue which is already there. He sprayed the wound, giving it a good soaking. Then he gave him two injections of the Kolto solution. And covered both openings to the wound with gauze pads, then wrapped gauze around the leg to hold the pads in place. He told the mercenary that it would be best if he stayed off his leg for the next couple of days, so that it could heal. Then the medic looked at the minor injuries. One of the Mercenaries had part of an ear shot off. A drop of the Kolto solution on the wound, was all it needed. A couple had burns from near misses. That only required a drop of the Kolto solution. There were some scrapes, which prompted him to ask the mercenaries if they wanted him to call over one of Madam's girls to kiss it, to make it better. They just wanted a drop of Kolto on it, then they would go kiss the girls. One of the mercenaries twisted their ankle during the firefight. He had them ice it, then told him he would wrap it up when he returned from the hospital. The medic then went to find the guy with the chest wound. When he found him, he inspected how well they attached the padded leather straps. He was able to hang a bag of intravenous fluids to the headboard of the bed and had it drip into a vein in his arm. He told his buddies that this will keep him hydrated, because he will not be able to drink while he is unconscious. He told them they are not going to like what he has to do next. He took a thin well lubricated piece of tubing, and forced it into the hole at the tip of his patient's horn of manhood. He pushed it in, a predetermined length. He attached a bag at the end of the tubing, and they could see a few drops of fluid come out of the tubing into the bag. He told them he had to do this, because they will not be able to wake him up to relieve himself, for the next two days. After this, he jumped onto Madam's skiff, and had the droid take him to the hospital. The Captain had handed him some credits, just in case. He tried napping on the way to the hospital. He must have been successful, because the droid had to wake him, to let him know he was there. He checked at the check-in counter for a Ben Brennan. The guy must have thought he was a comedian, because he asked him which one. So he told him it did not matter, they all smelt the same. The guy was obviously confused by the reply, which he should be, because it made no sense, just like his question. He ended up telling him where the waiting room was for patients in surgery. He found both mercenaries stretched out, asleep on the couches. He made room for himself, and joined them in dreamland. The next thing he knew, a nurse was shaking his shoulder. She asked him if he was here about Ben Brennan. He told her he was. She told him that he was just out of surgery, and would probably be out for at least another twenty minutes. He asked if it would be okay to see him. She said she could take him to his room, but he was still sedated. The medic told her it was okay. She did not like that he started going through the patients charts as soon as he entered the patient's room, like he was some sort of doctor. She was surprised that he was able to call up the scans on the patient's arm on the terminal in the room. She told him that he was not supposed to do that, it was privileged patient information. He just waved a hand at her and told her it was all right. He studied the scans, like he knew what he was looking at. Then he looked at the chart again. Then he pulled a needle out of the pack around his waist and a container with fluid in it. That is when she panicked, and ran for the doctor. They both ran back to the room, in time to see him remove the needle from the patient's arm. The doctor asked him what he had just injected into his patient. The man told them that he was actually his patient. He had just referred him to them, because he could not do what needed to be done. What he just injected into his arm was Kolto solution, from his medi-kit. He then asked, if he is the surgeon who operated on his buddy's arm. He would like to tell him he did some very good work. He then informed them that as soon as his buddy wakes up they would be leaving. The surgeon objected, he needs to be kept under observation. The man said that he would be under observation, just not in the hospital. The surgeon asked, if this had anything to do with the incident at the spaceport? "You know Doc. That we cannot talk about stuff like that." The surgeon told the nurse that she can leave, he has everything under control. She just stood there, which annoyed the surgeon. He asked the man were one could obtain the Kolto solution. He told the surgeon that he did not know. He was able to get a Kolto pac from Madam Cothia at the brothel. Both surgeon and nurse thought this was good information to know. At this time, the two mercenaries stuck their heads through the doorway, and asked, "Hey Doc. How's our brother?" Both men in the room started to reply, then they both stopped. The medic, turned to the surgeon. "It's your hospital, you can tell them." The surgeon quickly told them how well the surgery went. The surgeon and nurse then decided it was best to leave these men alone. She did hang back a little, trying to stay close enough to hear something. She was disappointed, either they were talking very quietly, or they were not talking at all. When they were ready to leave, the intern in charge of the Trauma Unit that day, did not want them to leave until he put a plaster cast on the patient. He did not tell them that it was because he needed the practise. The medic told him the splint was sufficient, because he needed to monitor the wound to make sure it was healing properly. The argument between them became quite heated, so a nurse went to get the Surgeon. After hearing what the nurse told him, he knew he had to intervene. When he approached, he called the man Doc, because that is what the other men called him. The intern was taken aback, by this. Obviously there was some sort of rapport between these two men, and the surgeon was recognising him as a medical professional. When Doc explained to him what the intern wanted to do, and why he opposed it, the Surgeon turned to the intern and told him that Doc was right, he needs to let them go as they are. The intern had no choice. He had to do as he said, or he would never be allowed to specialise in the field of medicine he wanted to.

They arrived back at the brothel just in time for a hot breakfast. The bleary eyed Captain was leaving just as they entered, he said he had some place to go. After breakfast, the medic managed to squeeze a couple of drops of Kolto solution, out of a now empty Kolto pac. He used the drops to massage the foot of the mercenary who had twisted his ankle, then he wrapped it up for support. He told the merc that he could walk on it, but try to keep it to a minimum for that day. He then went to check on all of his critical patients. He was happy to see someone awake, keeping an eye on his chest wound patient. He checked the bag that was holding the fluid being drained from his bladder. It would be a number of hours before he would need to empty it. He was happy to see that the lady shot in the side was resting comfortably. The Master Sergeant, who had fallen asleep in the chair next to her bed, was still holding her hand. He left the room quietly, there was no need to wake either of them, but the Master Sergeant was going to need a neck massage when he wakes up. He came across one of Madam's girls, he was surprised because he had never seen one up this early before, except for Madam Cothia herself. He asked her if they have bedsheets for children who have a problem wetting their bed. She did not know, and asked him why he would need it, since there are no children in the house. He told her he was worried about his chest wound patient. He was keeping him unconscious, but there was still the small risk that he might have an involuntary bowel movement, which would soak through the bed sheet and ruin the mattress. She thought for a moment, and told them that they have a special small bed sheet that a lady is allowed to use if she is having trouble with her moon cycle, and is worried that she might bleed excessively through the night. The medic thought that would be perfect, so she went to retrieve it for him. She helped the medic position it under his body. When she saw the tube coming out of his horn of manhood, and connected to the bag. She told the medic that she guessed he did not want any of the girls coming in to play with him while he slept. The medic told her she was a naughty girl. The mercenary who was keeping an eye on his buddy told her that he would not mind playing with her, when his friend comes to take his place. She whispered in his ear where he could find her. When they left the room, the medic told her he needs to rest for a couple of hours, can she make sure someone wakes him up, because he has to go check on his patients again. He found a couch and fell asleep on it right away. She came back with a blanket and covered him. She gently stroked his cheek with the back of her fingers. This is the type of man that she hoped, would someday come, and take her away with him. Then she left. The Captain had just returned from the apothecary with the Kolto pacs he had just purchased. Madam Cothia's tip paid off. He was planning on giving the medic the Kolto pacs right away, but since he was sleeping, he can give them to him, after their meeting, just before lunch. He decided he needed to sleep as well.

At the meeting the Captain told the mercenaries that were present, that because of a tip from Madam Cothia, he had just spent Two Thousand Credits, to buy Kolto pacs. "With the scarcity of Kolto, it might be a long time before we can find some again. So if you go to the medic, and he thinks your injury does not warrant using the Kolto solution. Don't get mad at him, he is just trying to save it, for the time he needs to save your life. Now that we have some new faces joining us, I can't call you dogfaces anymore, because a couple of the mercenaries have very nice faces." Then he looked at the two privates. "You know I'm talking about you." Then he blew them a kiss. The privates turned bright red. Which made everyone laugh. They did not know if the Captain was hitting on them. Because if you look up dogface in the dictionary, you will find a picture of both of their faces right there. Then the Captain got serious, "The mercenary unit we wiped out last night, was the Red Demon Unit." The mercenaries started congratulating one another. This should translate into lucrative contracts. The Captain held up his hand for silence. "I know what you are thinking, because of Red Demon Unit's reputation, we should be able to demand more credits for our services. Now that is true until we are all dead. Most will not believe that two small units that have never worked together before, were able to combine their resources, and take out a larger unit like the Red Demon Unit. This thinking may save our lives. If word gets around that we took out the Red Demon Unit. Other mercenary units that are around the same size as them, will hunt us down. Not for revenge. Just so they can say they took out the mercenaries that wiped out the Red Demon Unit. So you can't say anything to anyone, until you are really old, and writing your memoirs. By then, it won't matter anymore." The mercenaries were all disappointed, but they knew the Captain was right. "Because the Princess Unit has joined with us, I just received word this morning that we were able to get the next contract. We ship out in eight days." The guys were already looking forward to their next contract, it is going to be different working with some good looking female mercenaries. They knew they had a good reputation as being tough. At the spaceport they showed that they don't back down from a fight. The Captain came up to the medic and handed him the Kolto pacs. The medic put all the pacs in his medi-kit except one. That one he was going to use right now before he had lunch. The Captain asked him if everyone will be ready. He told him, that because he has the Kolto pacs, they will all be ready except the one guy who was shoot in the leg. He will probably need the help of a cane for the next month. He wants to talk to their Masseuse, because she has experience working with injured patients. He wants to see if she will give priority to the injured mercenaries, when they ask for massages. A good massage can be almost as good as Kolto, when it comes to healing injuries. Before he walked away, the Captain told him, that he thinks one of the young ladies likes him. The medic was surprised, and asked who? The Captain said the young lady who covered him with the blanket this morning. The medic shook his head. He did not know who covered him with the blanket. He would not mind thanking her. The Captain said it was that young lady right there, and he motioned with his head. The medic turned to see a young lady lead the guy who had been watching his buddy, who said he would like to play with her, to a bedroom. The one who had helped him this morning, and he had called a naughty girl. He was embarrassed for having called her that, she was really nice. He thanked the Captain for telling him that. Then went to find the patients he wanted to give injections to.

After lunch, when he was just finishing his rounds, he almost bumped into the young lady, as she came out of the bedroom with the mercenary. When she saw it was him, she suddenly became embarrassed, like he had caught her doing something bad. Lots of men have seen her come out of a bedroom with a customer, and it had never bothered her before. But she was afraid to look at his face, in case he was upset. When the medic saw her reaction to him. He knew she liked him. He asked her if he could talk to her for a second. He did not sound upset, so she looked at his face. He was smiling at her, so she smiled back. "I forgot to thank you for helping me this morning, I really appreciate it. I also understand that you are the angel I have to thank, for covering me with a blanket this morning. I don't know of any way I could ever pay you back, but as soon as I finish checking my patients, I would like to go for a walk to stretch my legs, and if you are not doing anything, I could use the company." She told him she would love to go with him, but she needs to check with Madam Cothia first, in case she was planning on sending her on an errand. He told her that he would wait for her in the dining area.

She went to Madam Cothia's office and saw that she was in a meeting with two mercenaries. Since the door was open, she thought it was safe to interrupt them. She knocked on the door and the conversation stopped. They all turned to her. She apologised for interrupting them, than she asked Madam if she needed her for anything, because the medic has asked her to go for a walk with him. Madam Cothia told her she could go, and she should take the shawl hanging on the back of the door, because she does not want her getting a chill. She also told her that if she sees her lieutenant, she should tell her about this meeting, because she should be here. Then she told her that when she comes back, she wants to talk with her.

Madam Cothia always had a short talk with any of the girls who look like they are falling for a mercenary. She likes to tell them that sometimes the mercenaries don't come back, even though they really want to. She remembers the first time she fell in love with a mercenary. She wasn't the Madam back then, she was just one of Madam's girls. She remember seeing all his buddies coming through the door of the brothel. He wasn't with them. When they saw her they all stopped, and looked embarrassed. That's how she knew he was dead. She started crying right where she stood. Madam put an arm around her, and led her to Madam's bedroom. She never told her to stop crying, she just held her, to let her know that she was there for her. At first she held her to herself, when they first sat on the bed. As it became later in the day, Madam got on the bed, resting her back against the headboard, and let her curl up beside her, and lay her head on Madam's lap. Madam had stoked her hair like she was a little child. She fell asleep like that. When she woke up in the morning, Madam was still stroking her hair. She got up, and saw the tearstains running down Madam's cheeks. Sometime during the night, Madam had been crying. She kissed her on her lips, and thanked her for being there for her. After that, if Madam asked her to do something, she did not hesitate to do it. It was shortly after that that Madam made her, her lieutenant, because she did not have one. After that, whenever a mercenary did not come back Madam was always there for her. The last time it had happened, Madam had retired, and she was the Madam. When she showed up at her home with tears in her eyes, she knew why she was there, and took her in. It was a few days later that she first met Richard. A mercenary unit had hired his ship to bring them back because they knew it used to be a military ship, and they could all safely fit in his cargo bay. They brought him and his crew to the brothel, to treat them to the best meal on the planet. She felt drawn to him, and he to her. She was emotionally broken when she first met him. He made her feel whole again. When she took him to her bedroom that evening, he confessed that he had never paid for sex before. But they never had sex. He made love to her. She told him that if he comes back to her, he never will have to pay for sex. He was the only one that always came back to her.

Madam wiped the tears from her eyes, and turned back to the gentlemen with her.

The young lady found Madam's lieutenant having lunch. She came up to her and whispered in her ear that Madam was in a meeting, and said she should be there. The lieutenant nodded her head to let her know that she heard her. As she approached the medic she held out her hand to him. He took it and they walked out the door, while the lieutenant quickly went to the meeting.

After the meeting, Madam Cothia and her lieutenant retrieved the last of their Kolto pacs from the Chef's cooler. They then went into the wine cellar. After the lieutenant closed and locked the door. Madam Cothia showed her a secret compartment in the wine cellar where they could keep their Kolto pacs. They agreed that it was okay to sell four of the six pacs they have, but they should always hold on to two. They knew that that apothecary had charged the Captain double, to recoup the profits that he would have gotten, if he would have sold the ones he made up for her. Maybe they can get him to do it again when they have more Kolto. Madam Cothia did not tell her that she still had one vial hidden in her bedroom.

On the Sith planet there was a military inquiry, since an influential local merchant claimed that the squad leader's action cost him more than a thousand credits in profit, and four Starfighters were lost with their pilots aboard, and a fifth Starfighter was damaged beyond repair, and its pilot was in a Bacta tank, recovering from his wounds.

When the merchant was asked, why the captain of the freighter and his crew, had acted the way they did? The merchant told them they had a number of reasons. First, this was their first trip to this planet, after the treaty, when it became a Sith planet. The merchant himself has heard rumours in the cantina, that freighters that have large crews often have crewmembers shanghaied by the Sith military. The officer conducting the inquiry, knew it wasn't a rumour, it was true. The merchant said that this ship normally had five crewmembers. The officer asked him, why so many? The merchant told him that it is quite an old ship, even though it does not look like it. So it does not have all the automation that the new freighters do. The second reason, which he had already mentioned to the squad leader, was that they were returning freight that had been stolen from their ship, a number of years back, and recovered by some local authorities. They were probably skittish about having strangers aboard their ship. Since this probably was their first trip to a Sith controlled planet, they were probably nervous about what sort of reception they would receive, since the ship was registered in the Republic. They may have feared that the Imperial Troopers might have tried to seize the ship. The officer realised that every reason the merchant gave, could account for the crews' actions. The officer asked him about their actions against the starfighters? The merchant told them that this ship has more confirmed kills against pirates, than any freighter he knows. So they would have needed to send a lot more starfighters, before this crew would have been concerned. The officer wondered how many they would have lost if they had sent more.

When he question each member of the squad, he received the same responses. The crew was nice. They were unarmed. They were not nervous, even when they pointed their blaster rifles at them. It was almost like they expected it. The just refused to allow anyone aboard their ship. They thought it was a nice gesture when the Gotal wished them a nice day before the ramp to the ship finally closed.

The officer could hardly wait to hear the reason that a squad of starfighters was sent against this ship, and why the squad leader wanted to board this ship to begin with. When one of the officers did get the opportunity to question the squad leader, they were surprised to hear that the squad leader did not suspect the freighter's crew of smuggling, or suspect them of any illegal activity, until they refused to let them board their ship. It turned out that the only reason the squad leader wanted to board the ship, was because he had never seen this particular design before, and wanted to see its interior layout. When asked about why the starfighters were scrambled. He replied that it was standard procedure to notify traffic control, if a freighter suddenly departs, before they have a chance to review their papers. The officer pointed out that he had not asked to see their papers. The squad leader replied he would have, once he was aboard the ship.

After the officers holding the inquiry deliberated. The officer in charge addressed the squad leader. He told him that he was not going to recommend that he be court martialed, even though there was sufficient evidence to support it. Instead he was recommending that the squad leader and his entire squad be transferred to a location where his inquisitive nature might benefit the Empire. He was going to recommend that they all be transferred to Balmorra. To the squad leader, this was worse than a court martial. He was sure that within a few days of them arriving on Balmorra, he could expect to be shot in the back by his own squad.

Madam Santhe was told by her office secretary that a representative of the government on Cerea, wished to speak with her. Madam Santhe said she would take it in her office. She activated the communicator in her office and saw the image of an elder, stately, Cerean female. As Cerea was almost on the opposite side of the galaxy from Lianna, in the Mid Rim, there was a considerable delay, between transmitting, and receiving. Madam thought it was a painful way to have a conversation. She called out the office door (very unladylike) to have someone bring her a cup of tea. When the Cerean official realised that she was connected. She bowed and addressed her as "Your Majesty", she then proceeded to explain the reason for contacting her. "Their government has recently confirmed a splendid phenomenon taking place on her planet. The Cerean male she has employed has only four wives, which in itself is not that uncommon for the few males that venture off of Cerea. What is unusual is that three of his four wives are currently pregnant. They have no record of it ever happening before. As theirs is a race in decline. Any possibility that this decline can be reversed, has the full attention of their government. To that end they want to send him a number of Cerean females, from which he can choose more honour wives. They are also including with this group the woman they have selected to study this family, and hopefully be accepted as one of his honour wives. If she is not selected, there are two other researches that are as equally qualified. Anyone of the three can study the family, but the researcher must be accepted as an honour wife. The reason they are contacting her first, and not the Cerean male, and his family, is because of the relationship she has with the family, and because of logistics. It appears that the family reveres her, holding her in a position of Matriarch, which in itself is unusual for Cereans. Concerning logistics, any new honour wives must be allowed to live with their family, and employment must be found for them, except the honour wife which is the researcher, her salary will be paid by the Government on Cerea. They are assuming that she would not allow any of the new honour wives, to go work for another company. So the number of new honour wives may be dependent on how many positions she can make in her company for them.

When the government first met with the researcher who proposed this project, somehow word of this project was leaked to the public, they received more than Three Hundred Thousand Applications from Single Female Cereans that were hoping to become one of this man's honour wives. They were able to bring this number down to Two Hundred applicants, by first eliminating any women who were older than the researcher herself, since a woman's fertility decreases with age. Another important factor they used, was how qualified the applicants were in terms of being able to work in Research and Development of weapons and ship systems. It would be negligent on their part if they only sent him candidates that were highly qualified in the social sciences, but had no knowledge of the simplest engineering principles. They have hired a luxury cruise liner to carry all of the Two Hundred applicants, along with a number of escort ship, all carrying Starfighters/Fighterbombers. To protect the candidates. It will probably take them at least Two months for them to arrive in Lianna's system. They were hoping that she had enough influence, that she would be able to keep the Sith from getting involved, because they had heard that the Sith require everyone to get permission, before they are allowed to marry."

She stopped talking after that, so Madam Santhe knew she could respond right away, it will just take a while for the reply to reach Cerea. "We will cooperate fully with our Cerean family. As far as the Sith's involvement. Their system cannot handle any person having more than two partners in a marriage. So as far as they are concerned, it is only the bond wife that is registered as married to him. All the honour wives just happen to live at the same location. We will need to know the mass and volume of every ship that will be arriving in the armada. So that our spaceport will be able to maintain its current orbit, once the armada is anchored to it. Only the cruise ship will be allowed to anchor to our spaceport directly. Let them know that they are not supposed to open access to the spaceport, or that will be considered an invitation by the Sith to come aboard. The escort craft will not be allowed to dock with the spaceport, but they can dock with the cruise ship and with each other. Santhe Corporation shuttle craft will be the only craft from Lianna, allowed to dock with the cruise ship, and will handle all the resupply situations for the Armada, as well as transporting any necessary personnel between the surface and the cruise ship." Madam Santhe than hit the mute button and called out for another cup of tea. When the Cerean responded, she thanked "Her Majesty" for her cooperation, and asked that she arrange for her communications department, to transfer her, so that she can communicate with the Male Cerean, and his family. Madam Santhe stepped out of her office, into the outer office. She asked a secretary to contact the head of R&D, to let him know that they will be transferring a call from the government on Cerea, for the Cerean Family, into his office. It was the only place in R&D where they could be assured some privacy. As soon as she has finished speaking with the head of the department. Contact communications to transfer the call. The Cerean male was unhappy that the government on Cerea, felt that they had a right to interfere with his family. This was one of the reasons he choose to leave Cerea with his than three wives, and come to Lianna to work for Santhe Corporation. His fourth wife was a nice bonus and has fit in very well. He likes his small family. He does not want the thirty wives his father had, and how they hurt one another to compete for his father's affection. His mothers, who all displayed a great deal of affection towards him, would hurt one another, just so that they could spend one night with his father. He was too young to know whether they did this deliberately, or whether this was just a normal unintentional side effect of their competition. He saw how his birth mother was torn apart inside by this, she wanted to protect him from the ugly side of family life, but she also had to compete if she wanted to be with her husband. His father died at a young age, even for a Cerean male. He has always believed that it was his wives, competing for him, that caused his premature death, because he was not blind to the fact that they were injuring one another. When the Cerean Official ended her speech, he did not reply. He just terminated the call. Then he got up and went home to his apartment. Not saying a word to anyone. His wives got up and followed him, because they could sense he was in distress, and wanted to do what they could to comfort him. The head of R&D contacted Madam Santhe right away, and told her what happened. On one hand she was surprised by his reaction, because Cereans tend to be more driven by logic than emotion. On the other hand she knew he was a passionate man, she could see it in the way he threw himself at his work, and in the way he interacted with his wives. She asked the head of R&D if he could determine how many more people they can absorb into R&D without it affecting productivity in a negative way. She than told him that the Government on Cerea, wants him to take more wives, and is sending over a boatload of females for him to choose from. The department head said that he knew many men who would be happy to have more wives if their current wife would let them. Madam Santee, reminded him that on Cerea the ratio of women to men is Twenty to One. When does more become too many? Especially when you have a big heart, like our Cerean male. He is probably afraid that he might not be able to love them all, like he does now. The more wives he has, the less time he can spend with each of them. The department head understood the logic. He told Madam Santhe that he should have a number for her by tomorrow. She than asked him about the construction taking place on the nursery extension, will it be done in time for the arrival of the first Cerean baby. He told her that it should be done 10 to 14 days before the due date they were given.

The Cereans did not show up for work, the next morning. Now Madam Santhe was really concerned. As soon as the department head gave her a firm figure, which was already after lunch, she headed straight for the Cereans' apartment. The Cerean male was lamenting that their happy family was ruined. He reminded his wives that this was why he left Cerea, so that they could keep a small happy family. "It was only when our bounty hunter showed up, that I knew I had room in my heart for one more, and you were all so willing to accept her that I was sure this was the way it must be. Now our own government says I must have more, because we are too happy, because we are able to make babies." He turned to his bond wife, "You know I can't choose. If I go up to the ship, and see all the women that want to marry me, that I will not be able to say no to any of them. And want to bring them all here, and try to love them even if it kills me." His bond wife gave him a big kiss right on his lips. Then held him to her, and told him, "We all know you are a man with a big heart, which is why it is so easy to love you, and why it is so easy for us to love each other because of you. So no matter what happens, know that we love you!" He started feeling better and went and hugged and kissed each of his wives. They then heard that someone was at the door. His bond wife told him it must be someone from the company, because they did not show up for work today. He instructed one of the honour wives to go to the door and send the person away, he did not want to talk to anyone. When the Honour wife saw that it was Madam Santhe at the door, she went back to her husband and pleaded with him. "Please dear husband, it is Madam Santhe at the door. Please don't make me send her away." The other wives got done on their knees and also pleaded with him. He was deeply moved by this. He told the honour wife to go bring her in, she is a good woman. Maybe she can help them? When Madam Santhe entered the family room. The husband took her hand in both of his, and knelt before her, his wives all got up and knelt around him for support. "Please Madam Santhe, please help us. They want to ruin our family. Madam Santhe did not know at first what to do, this was all so emotional. "Please let us all go and sit on your comfortable chairs. One of the wives can go and make us all a cup of tea. You know that I would never let them ruin your family. Is there a way that you can take a few more wives, without upsetting your family's dynamics?" The bond wife told her that her husband is afraid, that if he goes up to the ship, and sees all the women who want to marry him, that he would bring them all back with him, he does not have the heart to turn any away.

Madam Santhe told her, that her husband is a good man, with a kind heart. There is no reason he has to go up to the ship. The bond wife asked her to elaborate. Madam Santhe told them that the first thing they need to know is that she had asked the head of R&D to determine how many more people they could take into R&D without productivity suffering. He has told her that they only have room for four more, with the resources that they currently have available. That means that if they include the researcher, the greatest number of additional honour wives he can take at this time is five. She looked at the husband and asked if that was manageable, or should they consider a smaller number. He told her that that was a more manageable number than two hundred. This cheered the wives up. Their husband was starting to return to his normal self. Madam Santhe turned to the bond wife. "Since your husband cannot go to the ship and choose who should be his new wives, the burden of choosing the new honour wives is yours, and whichever of the other wives you choose to share the burden with." Madam Santhe suggested that they go to the ship, and randomly select candidates for interviewing, after they had interviewed the researcher as a potential honour wife. After they have found the women that they are satisfied will fit into their family, and be good honour wives, they should stop interviewing candidates. Even if the first four people they interview, besides the researcher, fit their criteria as good honour wife material. That way everyone will know that they all had an equal chance. Their disappointment at not being chosen, should be minimised. The women all liked her suggestion, and their husband approved. The husband also talked to them about setting up a schedule, so all the wives would know when they will be with him next, so that there is no competing for his affection. He also suggested that only they be allowed to give him a Kolto massage, because they already know how to deal with its side effects. Madam Santhe wondered why all the wives suddenly turned red. She knew that now was not the time to ask, she was sure that eventually one of them would tell her. As she got up to return to the office, she suggested they take the rest of the day off, and enjoy being a family. She did expect them at work, first thing in the morning.

When Madam Santhe was finally told by the bond wife what the side effect was, she had a good laugh. Even though the bond wife was uncomfortable telling her. When Madam Santhe confirmed that they all enjoyed this unexpected time of pleasure. She told her to tell the other wives she was happy for them. She then asked the bond wife if it was true that she also was pregnant. The bond wife looked shy and smiled, she said it was true. Madam Santhe hugged her, and congratulated her. Four for four, no wonder they wanted him to have more wives.


	4. Chapter 4

©2016

Dathomir

One day after jumping to hyperspace, Captain Richard invited Andriel, Chitrah, and Krillgan, to his cabin. He let them sit on his bunk, as he sat at his desk. He told them it was time they knew where they are going, because the next planet they stop at, will be their new home. He is taking them to a planet called Dathomir. Chitrah asked him if that was the planet the Kwa came from? The Captain said it was, and Krillgan asked, "What are Kwa?" Chitrah asked if he remembered him telling him about the Rakata, when he told him about the history of the Chagrian people on Deysum III. Krillgan nodded his head yes.

"The Kwa were a giant blue skinned lizard people. They were very intelligent, and knew how to manipulate the force. They learnt how to travel between planets without using starships, like we do today. They built Star Temples, inside the Temples they had built Infinite Gates, and that is how they traveled between planets. They were a good, kind people that always tried to help other species they encountered. Often they would find species in primitive states, and would uplift them, making them more intelligent, more aware of their surroundings, and more aware of the force. No-one knows how many species they helped this way. They were the ones who discovered the Rakata. They were a primitive people, and the Kwa saw that they were powerful in the force. Because of that, they did not study them as well as they should have, or they would have found that the Rakata were strong in the dark side of the force. They would also have learnt that when the Rakata encounter another species, they try to enslave them. If they can't enslave them, then they try to destroy them.

So the Kwa uplifted the Rakata, thinking they would help them in their work. When they found the Rakata enslaving all the species they had helped, they were horrified. So they went to war with the Rakata, hoping they could free the species they enslaved. In the war they found that they were not fighting the Rakata directly, but the ones they had made their slaves. They were destroying the ones they wanted to help. So they stopped fighting. Instead, on some worlds they destroyed their Star Temples and the Infinite Gates inside of them, on other planets they left giant Wuffa Worms to guard them.

The Rakata did not know how to use the Star Temples, and the Infinite Gates inside of them. So they built the first starships, and used the force, to power their hyperspace drives. They wanted to chase after the Kwa, because they knew they could not enslave them, so they wanted to destroy them. We don't know if the Rakata succeeded, but the Kwa disappeared."

Captain Richard was impressed, he did not know that Chitrah was also a student of history. He told them that he had learnt something about the history of Dathomir that should fill in the gaps concerning his knowledge of both the Rakata and the Kwa. He told them that in his younger years, he came across the planet and landed near what looked like the largest habitation on the planet. "The locals have two names for it. Some call it Neutral Town, since it was the only place on the planet where the force using women of the different clans, who call themselves Sisters, agreed not to fight. Others call it Trading Town, because it was the only place where Sisters would bring the extra goods produced by their clan, and trade it. Either with the town's people, or with Sisters from other clans who came there to trade. I found out that there is one thing Dathomir is always short of, and that is men. Since they knew that I was neither a pirate, nor a slaver, I had the opportunity to sleep with many Sisters, from most of the clans, and learnt some of their history."

Krillgan asked the Captain, why the Sisters wanted to sleep with him? Were they afraid to sleep by themselves?

The Captain was somewhat embarrassed, he had forgotten that one member of his audience was still a child. He told Krillgan that the Sisters would sleep with him so that they could play like parents play, and maybe start a baby. Chitrah bent over and told him that he would explain it to him when he gets older.

Krillgan knew that there was a lot he needed to learn about when he was older, so that he could understand what adults are talking about. So far he knew that there was a relationship between parents sleeping, and parents playing, and somehow it affected their breathing.

The Captain continued. He said that the Sisters from all the clans were in agreement on the early part of their planet's history. It is only with later events, because it involves their own clan's history, that their stories diverge.

"The Kwa were very upset with themselves, because they uplifting the Rakata. They destroyed much of the work they had tried to accomplish. They decided to punish themselves. They knew how to uplift others, so they attempted to reverse the process on themselves. They also wanted to reverse what they did to the Rakata, and maybe peace would return to the galaxy. They decided that the best way to do this was with a species specific infection. The problem was they did not want to infect themselves, until they knew that the Rakata were infected. But how do you infect the Rakata without them knowing they have been infected, and how do you ensure that they were all infected, because if some were not infected, the species could rebound, and in the end nothing had changed. So they decided that the best thing to do was to abandon all the planets, and retreat to Dathomir and wait for the Rakata to come to them. Now the Kwa had found humans to be a very peculiar species, because unlike the Rakata, or themselves, where everyone was a force user. The humans had some very powerful force users, but they were relatively rare. The humans were also the one species that they seemed the most attached to. So when they found out that they were abandoning their worlds, the ones who worked closest to them, pleaded with the Kwa to take them with them, and not abandon them to the Rakata. The Kwa were divided over this. They knew that the Rakata would eventually find them on Dathomir, but others did not have the heart to leave the ones they were closest to behind, because they knew they would be enslaved."

"No-one knew at the time that without some force sensitivity, you could not live on Dathomir. So after they retreated through the Infinite Gate on Dathomir, and sealed the Star Temple, so no one could enter it. They found that some of the humans seemed ill. Now Dathomir has four moons, and each moon tries to exert its own influence on the body. Some Sisters believe that it is somehow connected to the force. Because force sensitive beings are able to negate the effects the moons have on them, except the closest and largest moon, which actually helps to stabilise the body. The men with no force sensitivity, would start doing crazy stupid things, some would even start to bleed out of their eyes, ears, and nose. They would regularly put themselves in harm's way, until they were eventually killed. Usually by an encounter with wild beasts. The women who had no force sensitivity would go into their moon cycle, and never stop. Eventually bleeding to death."

"The Kwa were sorry they brought the humans. Because of the horrible way some of them died, when they first arrived on Dathomir. But there was a large enough population that did survive the first few months on Dathomir. So if they were to continue to survive, they would need to be taught about the dangers of the planet. They did not want to teach them about the poisonous plants, but they knew that the humans were curious enough that they would start to find them on their own. So the Kwa started teaching them about the flora and the fauna. There are some plants that have poison, but also have healing properties, if you know how to use them. They tried not to teach them about the force, but there were some force users among them, that did not manifest this ability until they came to Dathomir. So the Kwa were forced to teach them some things about the force, so that they could help the other humans. They also made the humans make themselves places to hide for when the Rakata came. The Kwa hoped that the Rakata would be so fixated on destroying the Kwa, and because they would have had so many human slaves from the other planets that they conquered, that they would leave the small human population on Dathomir, alone."

"When the Rakata did finally come, they did not bother the human population too much, except when they wanted sport. They would pit humans, against local wild animals, just to see how long they would survive, and how gory their death would be. The Kwa fled to the Great Desert, when the Rakata came, which confused the Rakata, because they knew that Kwa were plant eaters. They did not know that the Kwa continued to watch them. When they noticed that the Rakata were fascinated by the Rancor. They knew they found the agent to help infect the Rakata. The Kwa snuck around the continent, placing a compound on the skin of every Rancor they could find. It would not hurt the Rancor in any way, but when the Rakata came close to a Rancor, they would become infected. The Rakata were so fascinated by the Rancor, that they started transporting them to other planets, to see how well they did in different environments, and to see how well the local animals adjusted to the Rancor. In transporting the Rancors, all of the Rakata ships carried the infection. When the Kwa realised that they could do no more to the Rakata. They infected themselves with the infection they prepared specifically for themselves, and retreated once again to the Great Desert. After the Rakata finally left, the humans quickly realised that they had no one to help them, except the knowledge that the Kwa shared with them. As they were familiar with the Kwa's use of symbols for writing, the human force users, which were called shaman, in the traditions of the planets they were from. Started using the Kwa symbols to record everything they could remember the Kwa taught them, as well as their own observances in the natural sciences, and in their use of the force. Each acolyte that would follow a shaman, was required to start his own book, because the symbols were not good at recording abstract thoughts. So a shaman, or an acolyte that became a shaman, could really only understand what they themselves had written, and would find trying to read someone else's book to be confusing. As the human population grew, they started to spread across the continent. But there would always be a male or female shaman, their acolytes, and then loose families. Back then the ratio of females to males was around 1.3 or 1.4 to 1. Which meant that if you had ten males in a community, you would have thirteen or fourteen females who would be living with them. This meant if you had six or seven monogamous couples, the remaining woman would have to share a partner."

"One day a pyramid shaped ship that everyone knew through the force, was called a Tho Yor, landed on the great plane, and all the shaman and acolytes were drawn to it, and where the shaman went, the people followed. The shaman all boarded this ship, drawn by the power of the force within it, and the promise of secrets to be revealed. They all took their books of wisdom and knowledge with them. The one good thing they did for the people of Dathomir was to forbid their acolytes from coming with them. If they had not, all knowledge would have be lost, and Dathomir would have been a much different world for the humans to live on. The shaman did promise their people that they would come back, but they never did. The Tho Yor, transported them to Tython, where they met other force users, and together established the Jedi Order. (The Captain had told the Sisters about the destination of the Tho Yor ship, and the founding of the Jedi Order.) On Dathomir, at first everyone waited for the shaman to return. Then the people started complaining that there wasn't enough food to sustain everyone, and they wanted to get back to their farms since harvest time was approaching. Some of the acolytes took the people back to their communities. Many of them stayed. When they heard that food was scarce, many of the acolytes that stayed, decided to fast until their masters returned. To show their love and devotion to their masters. Unfortunately they all died of starvation. The acolytes and people who had chosen not to fast, eventually had to flee the plains, because the stench of death attracted predators and scavengers. When the realisation finally set in, that the shaman were not coming back. Some of the male acolytes took this as a sign that they were destined to rule all the people. It is ironic that so many of them thought this at the same time. This is how the Acolyte Wars started. Some would lead their people challenging their opponent to one on one combat. Others would drive their people before them to try and overwhelm their enemies. There were some male acolytes who wanted nothing to do with war and tried to protect their people."

"There were a number of female acolytes that were appalled by the loss of knowledge, especially healing knowledge. They sought out allies amongst the other acolytes, to see if they were willing to share their knowledge, so that all knowledge would not be lost. It became common practise that when two acolytes agreed to meet, they would each set up camp with their followers, on opposing hills, then they would strip down naked, to show they meant the other no harm, and would meet in the valley between them. With their camps watching from the hilltops. This way if one really did intend on harming the other, the followers of the one being harmed would be able to flee and warn others of the treacherous acolyte, so others would not fall in this trap. Some of the female acolytes later returned to the great plain to see if they could find the books of knowledge and wisdom, that the acolytes who starved themselves to death had written. Hoping that by studying them, they would be able to glean some knowledge or wisdom that was lacking, on their part. The female acolytes who met regularly with the other female acolytes found that by meeting open and naked, they started bonding with these women, and considered them more than friends, they considered them sisters. They were the first Mothers for the clans that would be formed afterward."

"The War of the Acolytes ended, when the one male acolyte who had successfully defeated all pretenders, decided to attack the village protected by the last male acolyte who just wanted peace for his people. The sisters found out that this acolyte was attaching their friend, and for some of them their lover. All of them brought their people to help him, because if the Tyrant was not stopped here, they would all fall before him. It was a vicious hand to hand battle. The male acolyte that wanted peace was going through the ranks of his people and of the sisters who joined him, using the force to heal and strengthen those he could. Finally he could not take it anymore. He told the sisters to watch over all the people, than he sought out and attacked the Tyrant. Physically they were fairly evenly matched, one drew his power from the light side of the force. The other drew his power from the dark side of the force. It was not long before they stopped using physical force, and started blasting each other with force lightning. As the sun was setting the flashes of light attracted the attention of the combatants around them, they stopped fighting to see which of the two Titans would win. After the sun set everyone could see the flashes of light. Neither man would concede defeat, even though the Tyrant's army by this time had been defeated, because of the help of the female acolytes. The Sisters ran to give their lover aid, when they saw what he was doing, but were too late. The battle ended when in a spectacular display of raw force energy, they both perished. The Tyrant had become a hideous creature before he died, having been transformed by the dark force energy that flowed through him. The lover was also disfigured by the burns he received over most of his body. He parted this life with a lover's kiss on his lips. The Tyrant's body was dragged to the edge of the continent and thrown into the ocean, so that his remains would not corrupt the land. The lover was burnt in a great fire, and his ashes were scattered, so that as a healer, he would continue to heal the land."

"The next day, they held the first Counsel of Mothers. They did not know it was called that at that time, because people had not yet started calling them Mothers. In this council they discussed how to divide the people and the land. They also made the first calendar. On Dathomir the days are 24 standard hours in length, but the year is 491 days long. They divided the year into 17 months, with most months being the length of time that the closest moon orbits the planet, 28 days. With each month divided into four, seven day cycles. The second longest month is during the summer solstice, and it is nicknamed the month of the trickster, because it is the only month that does not divide evenly by the seven day cycle. Mothers do not want their babies born during this month, because people will assume they are tricksters, and therefore not trustworthy. The longest month of the year is associated with the winter solstice, and the Feast of New Beginnings. They also discussed what to do about male force users. They were and still are afraid of them, since it was the male force users that started the Acolyte War, and it was male force users that deceptively killed many of the acolytes they were allied with. One of them pointed out that all their lovers were male force users, and they were their strongest defence against the Tyrants, and they all sacrificed their lives for their people, wanting them to live in peace. When they thought about their lovers, they realised that what they had in common, was that they were all skilled healers. They agreed then, that they would not train a male force user, unless they showed a natural ability to be a healer. If a male force user was not showing signs of becoming a healer by the time they reached puberty, they would be asked to leave their communities, and live outside them. So that they would not disrupt the lives of the people. They knew it was wrong to ask them to go on their own, and they felt it was their responsibility to make sure that they were surviving all right. They knew that the women they trained, would seek them out to be their lovers. That it would be okay for the women to take them gifts. That the men should know that they were not prostitutes."

Now every time Krillgan would not understand a word Captain Richard said, he would turn his head to ask his father what it meant, usually his father who had his hand on his shoulder would squeeze it gently, when he started turning his head, to let him know it was something he would learn when he was older. So it was very hard for him to follow the story. When he turned to ask him what puberty meant, he was surprised that his father did not squeeze his shoulder, and almost forgot to ask the question. Chitrah told him that puberty was when a child's body starts to transform into the body of an adult. So boys start becoming men, and girls start becoming women. One thing that happens to most boys and girls is their voice will go lower. This is more noticeable in boys. Another thing that also happens, is that hair will start to grow in unexpected places.

Krillgan asked his mother, if she had hair grow in unexpected places?

"I'm a Devaronian son. Remember? I don't have hair, only fur."

"So what did happen to you?"

"I did not have mountains when I was a girl, and my hips got wider, so I could give birth to you. My father said I started looking prettier, just like my mother."

"Well I think you look pretty, too."

"Why thank you son."

Then she leaned over and kissed him on the forehead. Then she looked at Chitrah.

"I know you look beautiful."

Then he leaned over and kissed her on her cheek. Just then they heard a knock on the door. Pula had told Coris that the family had been in the captain's cabin for a long time.

"Do you think he is telling them one of his stories?"

Coris liked the Captain's stories too. But he suspected that what the Captain was telling them was a little more serious than just a story. Coris suggested that they make them all tea.

"That way if the Captain is telling stories, he will let us stay."

So when the Captain asked Chitrah to get the door, since he was the closest, it was Pula and Coris standing there, with a tray full of tea. Everyone was happy to see them, and thankful for a cup of tea. Captain Richard thanked them, then told them that they could go. When he saw the sad face Pula had, when he turned toward the door, he said, "Pula! I will tell you a story later."

Then he looked at Krillgan, "And it will be one that you can understand."

Krillgan smiled, he liked hearing the Captain's stories, when he could understand them.

After they closed the door, the Captain started telling them about Dathomir again.

"The Mothers talked about how bonded they felt to each other, and wondered if meeting naked had anything to do with it. Because you cannot hide who you are, nor can you change who you are. They all wanted to have as close a relationships with the women they are training, as with each other. They decided that in their training to incorporate a bonding ritual where they must all be naked, so that they will learn to accept each other as they are. They thought that having a bonding ritual four times a year should work, because that was how often they were able to meet with each other. During the war."

Andriel asked the Captain, if they still have this bonding ritual? The Captain said, that as far as he knew, the bonding ritual is still part of the Sisters' training. Andriel was not sure she wanted Krillgan to be standing naked, in a room full of naked women. Krillgan asked his mother, what naked meant? Andriel told him that it meant you had no clothes on. Krillgan asked if that was what he was, when they went to the swimming area on Manaan, and she took off his swimming outfit to scrub him with the sponge, even though all the children were watching. "Was I naked then?"

Andriel looked at Chitrah, and asked him if there really were children watching? Chitrah shook his head yes. He thought there may have been other people there, but if Krillgan says they were children, then they were children. Andriel apologised for doing that to him. Then she told him that if it bothered him, he should have let her know. Krillgan said it did not bother him. Then he asked if he should have been bothered? She quickly told him no. So he asked again if he was naked? Andriel told him he was. Then she asked the Captain, what they do during these bonding rituals? He said he did not know for sure. From what he understood, they just talk. Everyone must share something. Usually it is something that has happened to you, since the last time they met. Andriel could not understand why they had to do it naked. Chitrah told her that when you stand before another person when you are naked, physically you cannot hid anything from that person. To also share something from the heart, you make yourself naked inside and out. So the other person either has to accept you as you are, or reject you by leaving, and I would bet that no one is allowed to leave, until the person in charge says they can go. Andriel asked him if he would do it. Chitrah told her that he would only do it, if she was with him. Because then he would know, that there was at least one person that would accept him just the way he was. Then he reached over and squeezed her hand. Andriel felt better since Chitrah seems to understand. Now she can talk to him about it later.

The Captain continued. "The Mothers decided that the best way to divide the people, was to tell the people were they would be, and let the people choose where they want to live and who they want to live with. They also agreed to return in one year to see how things are going, and discuss any changes that needed to be made. This was how the clans started. One Mother went to live near the Singing Mountains. Her clan is known as the Singing Mountain Clan."

Krillgan asked him, how mountains sing?

"The one Sister said that high up in the mountains some crystals are exposed and stick out into the air. Some metal is also exposed. So when the wind blows just right, some of the crystals and metals will vibrate, making a sound. But if you want to hear the mountains really sing, you must bring some musicians with different instruments, and you will hear more sounds than just the wind can make. She said it was very beautiful, but also very dangerous, because of the Flying Rancor."

Chitrah was startled, "There are Rancor that can fly?"

"They are not really Rancor, but they are almost as big, and almost as strong. So the people of the Singing Mountain Clan have given them that nickname, so that visitors will be more careful when going into the Singing Mountains. If I remember their name, I will tell you. Anyway, another Mother went to live near the Misty Falls. Because of the high humidity in that valley, there are plants that grow in abundance there, that are scarce to find in most other places. So they are called the Misty Falls Clan. Another Mother went to live in the Red Rolling Hills next to the great plain, so they are called the Red Hills Clan. Another Mother choose to live by a river with many rapids, called the Frenzied River, so they became the Frenzied River Clan. The last Mother choose to live in the Great Canyon, so they became the Great Canyon Clan. There were some people that did not want to go with any force user, they just wanted to stay where they were. They were afraid of force users, because they started the war. The Mothers told them that they can live where ever they want, only they would have no one to protect them or heal them. Then they went to where they told the people they would be. It was during that first year that the people started calling them Mothers, because they did not like the word Shaman. The Shaman had abandoned them. And they definitely did not like the term acolyte either. They said they seemed like Mothers to them, especially because their pupils were calling each other Sisters."

"You have to keep in mind that at this time there were almost as many force using males as there were force using females. This was also because, when a force using woman had mated with a force using man. She usually gave birth to twins. One boy and one girl, who would both grow up to be force users. At the second Council of Mothers. This time they did call it that. They decided, that instead of every person having their own book of knowledge and wisdom. It was better that there would be only one book per clan, and the book belonged to the clan. That way knowledge would be preserved, even if someone passed away. It was okay if a Sister copied a portion of the book to study it. But only the Mother was allowed to decide what would be added to it. It was only later when the clans started having elders, that both the Mother with the elders, would decide what was added to it. It was also during this meeting that divisions started to appear between the Mothers. The Mother of the Misty Falls Clan thought that they should only follow the light side of the force, and dedicate themselves to it. The other Mothers thought their needs to be a balance between the light side of the force, and the dark side of the force, just like there is balance between day and night. Life could not exist without both day and night. They choose to disagree. After that, they were less willing to share the things they learnt, with the other Mothers."

"Years later a Clan Mother gave birth to twins. Now these twins loved to fight. Just like your parents, Krillgan, when they have those suits on. They rarely hurt each other, and when they did, they were very sad and always apologised to each other. Their mother was disappointed that her son was not as interested in healing as he was in helping his father in his blacksmith shop. He was only interested in healing when he hurt his sister, because he wanted her to feel better. When she could put it off no longer, she asked her husband if he could take their son and find a place to live outside their village. Just because she was Clan Mother, she could not break the rules for her son. The father chose a valley where there were lots of trees on both sides to burn in the forge, and a nice little stream to provide them with water. Mother never stopped her daughter from visiting them, and when she did, she made sure that she always took a huge food basket. What she did not know was that her daughter continued to fight with her brother, but under the watchful eye of the father. Whenever he spotted something that he thought was important he would always stop them, and explain to them what he saw, so they were becoming better fighters, each time they met. The daughter was also an excellent archer, so they also had lots of fresh meat when she would come to visit. The other thing she did, but did not tell her mother, was to teacher her brother how to use the force, to help him to be a better fighter. She did this because she found that she was starting to beat him regularly, when they would fight. Since she knew how to use the force, while he did not. He started using what she had taught him about using the force in his fighting, in his blacksmithing. He was able to work with metals that his father could not. He also grew into a handsome young man that was often courted by the young Sisters of the neighbouring clans."

Krillgan asked his father what courting means? Chitrah told him that it was a way that a young man or a young woman let a person know that they were attracted to them and wanted to spend time with them. "Usually you bring them some small gifts, to let them know you like them. If courting is successful, it usually leads to marriage." Krillgan than asked him if he courted mother? Chitrah told him that he was unable to do it before they were married, because they were forced by the Sith to marry. But he did court her afterwards, because he wanted her to know that he really liked her, and wanted her to know that they could be happy living together. Krillgan than asked him what type of gifts he would give her? Chitrah told him that from time to time, he would buy sweet treats, because they both loved them, and they would have some tea and eat their sweet treats together. Krillgan asked him, if he ever got her anything else? Chitrah reminded him that his mother loves flowers. Her mother had told him that if he ever sees certain flowers for sale, to buy them for her, no matter how much they cost. Krillgan asked, if he remembered to buy the flowers? Chitrah turned purple, and said, "Sometimes." Which made Andriel laugh. Krillgan thought for a moment, "Does that mean. If you court someone before you get married, you should keep courting them after you get married?" Both parents said, "Yes!" Captain Richard thought that this was good advice, and should remember that, because he is getting married very soon. When he saw that Krillgan was satisfied, he continued.

"The young man let the Sisters know, that if they wanted him to be interested in them, than they need to bring him metals, the more unusual, the better. Some sisters brought him a metal that their blacksmiths found difficult to work with. It was just the challenge he needed. And he was very nice to those sisters. (The Captain decided not to say what he had originally thought of saying, because he would have been using words that Krillgan would not understand.) He discovered that he could not use the force to increase his strength to help forge this metal, because when he used the force, the metal seemed to be activated by the force, and became very strong. At first he thought of making a hammer and anvil out of it. But his father pointed out that he did not have enough. Besides if he did, he could still not forge this metal on it, as he could not use the force when forging. In its natural state, it was a brittle metal, so if he did not use the force, he would easily brake his hammer and anvil. The young man then decided that he had enough to make a short sword. Since no one had a name for it, he called it Dathomirite, after the planet. When he finished the sword and activated it. It had lovely blue veins running through it. Leather was nothing before it, and he easily chopped through wood. It was the strongest metal he knew. He made a practise sword out of a hardwood that was the same length, only fatter, because he wanted it to be close to the same weight, for when he fought with his sister."

"At the same time, in a faraway clan. One of the Sisters abandoned her clan, as she was seduced by the dark side of the force."

"Father what does seduce mean?"

"A person is seduced when they are offered something they desire, but to get it they must surrender themselves to what or who they desire."

Krillgan turned back to the Captain.

"The Sister dedicated herself to the dark side of the force, and is recognised as the first Nightsister." "Father, why was she called a Nightsister?"

"I don't know. You will have to ask the Captain." "Captain?"

"All Sisters that abandon their clans, to follow the dark side of the force, are called Nightsisters. They are also called witches by the Sisters they abandoned. If you call any other Sister a witch. It is taken as a tremendous insult, and they may kill you for it. The reason they call them Nightsisters, is because they follow the dark side of the force. They are said to walk in darkness, even on a bright sunny day." Krillgan seemed satisfied with the Captain's answer. So he continued.

"The witch knew that there were almost as many force using men as there were Sisters in all the clans, and many of these men were unhappy with their lives, because they did not know how to use the force. She decided to go around and seduce all the male force users, and promise them a taste of using the force."

Krillgan did not interrupt, because he thought she was using the lure of being able to use the force, as the tool of seduction, and no one wanted to try and correct him. Which would cause more confusion.

"She ended up gathering a whole army of male force users to herself, and they made her their Queen. She did not show them very much, in terms of using the force, because she was afraid that they might become more powerful than she was, and one would make themselves King, and afterwards make her their slave. When she heard about the blacksmith's son, and how strong and handsome he was. She desired to make him her slave. She found him alone in the blacksmith shop, hammering away on some metal beside the forge. She sensed that somehow he had figured out how to use the force, to help him with his work. He was the strongest force using male she had ever met, and greatly desired to have him. She slowly seductively, started removing her clothing."

"Father. What does seduct…, seduct…, the word he said, mean?"

"It means that she was trying to tease him by removing her clothes slowly."

Krillgan was frustrated, "Then why didn't he say so!"

The Captain was clearly embarrassed. Chitrah rubbed his son's shoulders, and Andriel fondled his hair. So that he would calm down.

"After she finished removing all her clothing, she approached him. Telling him all the things she wanted to do to his body. He replied, "Go away witch! There is nothing you have that I want." At that moment, his sister and father returned with armloads of wood for the forge. The sister sensing the dark force energy she was using against her brother, instinctively dropped the wood from her arms, and reached for her bow and arrow. After she let the arrow fly, she grabbed the first heavy object she could get her hands on, and ran at the witch. Fully intending to kill her. The witch, startled by first the intrusion, then the arrow flying at her heart. Was barley able to react in time, to use the force to deflect the arrow. She fled the workshop completely naked, knowing that she did not have time to pick up her clothes, with the strong force using Sister running at her, ready to strike her down. After the witch ran out of the workshop. The sister stopped chasing her, because she wanted to make sure her brother was okay. Her brother with tears in his eyes, hugged her, and thanked her. Because he had rejected her, she had started to use dark force energy against him, and he did not know how to fight against it. Their father told them that he heard she has an army of admirers, ready to do whatever she asked of them. Because his son rejected her, the father was sure she would go get her army. Then return to destroy him. He told his children that he was going to call their mother."

"The Clan Mother had given her husband an animal horn, when he and her son were ready to leave the village. She had him practise blowing on the horn, until he figured out how to make a loud sound. She told them that if something was wrong, no matter what it was, she would come running. So he took the horn that was hanging on the wall of the blacksmith shop, and went to the top of the hill, on their clan's side, and blew the horn as loud and as long as he could. When he got his breath back he blew it again to make sure she heard him. Then he blew it again just to be safe. The witch after she fled the blacksmith's shop, ran through some thorny bushes, just so they would scratch her body, and cause her to bleed. When she came close to her army she started crying. Then she collapsed on the ground from apparent exhaustion, when they approached her. She told them to look at what the blacksmith had done to her beautiful body. He tore her clothes off and started beating her. She said this, so her men would hate the blacksmith. She told them, that then his lover came home, and tried to kill her. The witch did not know that the Sister was actually his sister. She thought that any woman helping him must be his lover. The witch had equipped her army with swords and spears, which they made themselves. A quarter also had bows and arrows, as they were experienced hunters, and fed her army. They all vowed to destroy this man who disgraced their Queen."

"Father. What does vowed mean?"

"A vow is a special type of promise. Remember the last time you did something bad. Your mother was very angry with you. So you told her that you were sorry, and that you would never do it again. Remember how she asked you, if you promise. You held up your hand and said, "I Promise". You had just made a vow to your mother."

"Did she hug them and kiss them like mother did to me, so I knew she forgave me, and was not angry with me anymore."

"No I don't think she did, because she was not angry with them. She was angry with the young blacksmith."

"Just then the army heard the blast of the horn. She told them, "See how he despises me. He is challenging you to battle for my honour." Now her men were so angry, they ran to where the blacksmith lived. Only they were so tired from the running, that they had to stop at the top of the hill to rest. The witch only had time to throw a robe on, if she wanted to keep up with them. The Clan Mother heard the blast of the horn, and called her Sisters to help her. When she heard the second blast, she knew something was really wrong, and started running faster. When the young man's lovers in the other clans heard the blast of the horn. They knew it was coming from where their lover lived. They told their Sisters that their lover needs their help. They ran off to help their lover, and their fellow Sisters were right behind them. Now you have to remember that the people had lived in peace for a couple of generations, and their numbers were almost as great as they were before the Acolyte War. The Mothers had refused to train their Sisters in any form of combat, because they were afraid that by teaching them fighting, their Sisters would actually fight. They just knew how to use the force to enhance their strength, their speed, and the skill with which they used the bow and arrows. So other than the bow and arrows, none of the Sister's had weapons. The brother and sister had gone to a field near their home, near the base of the hill closest to their mother's clan. They knew their father was up on that hill, and would protect their backs. When the army appeared on the top of the opposite hill from their father's. The sister let two arrows fly at the witch. Because she used the force, the army was within her bow's range, long before they could shot back. The witch laughed as she easily deflected the arrows, one to either side of her. It was only when she heard the men grumble, and move away from her, that she realised that she had killed the two men on either side of her, with the arrows that were shot at her. She fell to her knees and pretended to cry over her two fallen heroes, but the men were starting to notice her pretend tears. Some of them wondering why they were there. The ones who did not notice her pretend tears charged down the hill. When the archers were within range, they let loose a volley of arrows. The sister also shot three arrows at their archers, before she and her brother, had to deal with all the arrows shot at them. The brother was equipped with his special short sword in his right hand, and his blacksmith hammer in his left. The sister had planted her fighting staff in front of her so that she could grab it when she needed it. The advancing army was surprised to see that both people were able to sweep the arrows out of the sky, using the force. The archers determined that they would have to get around them, if they wanted to injury them with arrows. The army tried to overwhelm the pair with the sheer weight of their presence, being more than two hundred strong. But the two stood like a mighty rock in the Frenzied River, forcing the water to flow around it. The strength, with which they were able to push back the attackers, surprised the men in the army. The young blacksmith was able to shatter the swords they had made with his glowing sword. Then he smashed them back with his hammer. The young lady was able to easily knock the attack of sword and spear aside. Then counter with a smash to the head, or a stab to the abdomen with the butt of her fighting staff. The bodies of the dead and wounded soon started piling up around them. They were standing back to back. The army soon became hesitant to attack them. Satisfied to surround them. Waiting for when the archers reached the hill behind the couple. A big man with two blacksmith hammers, assail the archers before they could get into position. Yelling, "No-one hurts my children." Soon he was joined by an older woman, who tossed them aside with her bare hands, as if they were a piece of wood needed to be thrown on the fire. Other women soon joined her. Though the archers easily outnumbered them, they were no match for them, and started to run away. Only they were not able to outrun the angry women, who when they caught up to them would knock them flat on their faces. Most of the archers would curl up into a ball and beg the women not to hurt them anymore. Which seemed to work, because the ladies stopped attacking them. Another group of young ladies smashed into the side of the army that had surrounded their lover and his sister. Assaulting them with their bare hands. When they turned to defend themselves. The women tore their weapons out of their hands, and started using them against them. When the sister noticed the army collapsing on one side, she shouted to her brother that they need to break through, and get to the witch. They both charged the surprised army, cutting through them like a farmer harvesting grain. The witch was standing by herself, watching her army collapsing under the strength of a few sisters attacking with their bare hands. She knew then that she should have trained them better. When the couple broke through her army. The witch picked up the swords of the dead men on either side of her. Ready to fight for her life. The sister had snatched a spear from a man she knocked aside. Then hurled it at the witch with all of her ability. The witch had crossed her two swords in front of her to use them and her power over the force to block the spear. The power of the throw and the power of the force behind it, overwhelmed her defences. Knocking aside the two swords, piercing her chest, at her heart. The spear was thrown so hard, that it actually went completely through her, and into the ground behind her, with only the butt of the spear shaft visible above the ground."

"With their Queen dead, the fight left the army and they surrendered. One of the men complained, that if they had been trained to use the force, this would not have happened. The Clan Mother countered, "If they had been trained to use the force, it would be her sisters that would be lying on the ground where the men where." He had no more to say, because he knew she was right. One of the other men asked why she had trained the young man they could not defeat, how to use the force. She told him that she did not train him, nor does she know of anyone who did. "Besides, her son is a very intelligent young man, she would not be surprised if he had figured it out on his own." Her son had a big smile on his face. Her daughter had her hands behind her back and was staring at the ground with a little red colour in her cheeks. Her husband would not make eye contact with her. As far as she was concerned she still did not know, and she definitely would not ask any of them."

"She spoke to her son. "You have definitely proven yourself. I believe my Sisters would be willing to make an exception for you. Please come home." He walked over and took two young ladies from another clan, by their hands. "If I went with you, how welcome would my special friends be in your village?" Both young ladies turned red, having been pointed out like this before his mother. "This is my home, and this is where I'll stay. So that none of my friends will be afraid to come and visit me." When he spoke, his hand pointed to all the sisters from all the clans, who responded to the blast of the horn. So his mother knew that some of her own Sisters were also his lovers. "Then there is only one thing that I can ask of you. Will you and your sister be willing to train all of my Sisters, so that they can fight as well as you two?" The young men in the army were surprised to hear that they were brother and sister. Just another lie the witch had told them. The brother and sister agreed. The men in the army were brought before an emergency Council of Mothers. The extent of the Nightsister's lies, and the ease with which she manipulated the men, frightened all the Mothers. They could now see why the one Mother was training all of her Sisters in combat. The next witch that tries this will do a better job in training her men. They all requested that her son and daughter also train their Sisters. Even though the Mother from the Misty Falls Clan, thought that no one should be trained for fighting. Because the other Mothers were doing it, she knew she had to let her Sisters train as well. Or hers would be the weakest clan. Easily overrun by anyone with a lust for power. What was surprising was how few men were actually killed. Many were critically injured, but all the clans pooled their healing resources, so that they would all recover physically. Mentally, many of them experienced severe head trauma, and now where no different than children. The Council of Mothers gave special permission to their parents to take them back home with them. It was surprising how many women still wanted to sleep with them, because they knew that their seed was still viable."

Krillgan moved his father's hand to his other shoulder, because his one shoulder was getting sore.

"Another interesting law that came about as a reaction to the first Nightsister incident, was that Clan Mothers must be married, and not share a lover. They found that the clans that had married Mothers' were more stable. The clan that the Nightsister came from was not. Each clan enacted this law on their own. It was not discussed, or agreed to, by the Council of Mothers."

"Some years later, a Sister was very much afraid of giving birth to a force using son, so whenever she slept with her lover, she used the force to try and control the sex of the child they would start together."

The Captain was also finding it hard to share the history of Dathomir, in a way that Krillgan could understand.

"When she gave birth to only a daughter and not to twins, she confessed to the Mother what she had done. The Clan Mother had her share with the other Sisters how she did it. Over the next year two more Sisters gave birth to only daughters. She called a special meeting of the Council of Mothers, and had the Sister explain what she had done, and how she did it. It was obvious from the healthy little girl playing on the rug in their midst, that there were no ill affects to the child that was born. They invited every Sister that had come with them from their clans, to come into the council room. They asked her to share this once again. They did this for two reasons. One, they wanted the Sisters to hear it for themselves. Two, they wanted to hear it again, so it would be easier to remember, and pass along to the Sisters that were not there. Within one year the number of force using males that were born to the Sisters, dropped from almost being on par, to almost zero. This shifted the ratio of females to males from around 1.3 or 1.4 to 1, to between 1.6 or 1.8 to 1. This created tension in the clans, and tension between the clans. The clans that were fortunate to have more males, also found that the Sisters from neighbouring clans were willing to take greater risks in trying to steal men away. Sisters from different clans would come to blows over one man. Fortunately the Sisters when they fought did not use weapons. But some fights were very vicious, and if the male they were fighting over, had not insisted that he be given their weapons, one of them would have been killed. As it was, some Sisters became permanently disfigured because of these fights."

"The Mothers knew that their clans were on the brink of going to war over men. They called an emergency council, to discuss what they could do to prevent war. They discussed, and they argued and they discussed it some more. For two cycles, with hardly any sleep they went back and forth. Finally, there were two thing they could all agree on. Too many women were getting married, making it harder on the women who were not married to find a man. To combat this, they agreed that before a couple can marry, they must have permission from the Clan Mother to marry. Without permission, other women could sleep with her husband, and she would have no one to complain to. The second law was even more controversial. Only women who were virgins would be allowed to marry a man."

Krillgan complained that his father squeezed his shoulder too hard. Chitrah picked him up and placed him on his lap. He apologised and hugged him and asked his forgiveness. Krillgan knew that his father did not want to hurt him. So it was easy to forgive him. They both agreed that Krillgan should place his hand on his father's shoulder. If he wanted to ask a question, he should squeeze it, if his father did not think he could answer it, he would ignore it. If his father thought it was something he could answer, he would ask him to ask his question. Andriel was worried that her son needed a nap, but did not want to ask the Captain to stop.

"When the news of the laws reached the clans, the women that were married were very upset, they did not know how this law would affect them. They certainly did not want every unmarried woman in their clan, traipsing through their home to sleep with their husband. The good thing the law did, was it took everyone's mind off of going to war with other clans. The hard thing for the Clan Mothers, was that they now had to interview every married couple in their clan. To determine if they really were married or not. Another law that came about, from the Clan Mothers interviewing married couples. Was that if a person that was married, willingly slept with someone, other than their marriage partner, they and the person they slept with, would be kicked out of the clan. Later when there were enough Nightsisters to form their own clan, they would try to use this law to steal men away from the other clans. In the end this did help relieve the tension in the clans, and between clans. Women who were not given permission to marry, resigned themselves to the fact that they would have to share a lover. It was easier to share, if they were all friends rather than enemies. So women who knew they would not marry, started looking for other women, with whom they would be willing to share a lover."

"Now the Sisters knew from experience that if a Rancor attacked them or the group they were with. If they put up a valiant enough effort to defend themselves. For some reason the Rancor chose not to kill them when they had the opportunity. Instead they would go look for other prey. It was not until the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan, found that she could communicate with a Rancor using the force, that they found out why. There was a herd of Rancor that had taken up residence not too far from her village. At first she studied them to see if there was a way she could get them to move further away. She was surprised to find, she could reach out with the force, and touch an individual's mind. They knew she did it. They would look directly at her, but they would not attack her. She concluded that it was not painful for them. The next time she touched them, she would start asking questions, to see how they would respond. She was surprised to hear them answer. If she asked them how they felt, she would usually get the answer, "Hungry". Often when she asked them what they were doing, they would respond, "Going Hunting". When she asked them, who was their leader, they would always point to an older female Rancor, sitting in their midst. One day she plucked up the courage to make her way through the herd to get close to the one they called the Herd Mother. The Herd Mother let her approach, and talk with her. She told the Clan Mother, that when different members of her herd, told her that she had talked with them. She ordered them not to attack her when she entered the herd. She knew that it was only a matter of time before she came to talk with her. The Clan mother was surprised at how intelligent she was. The Clan Mother asked her what foods they eat. She was not surprised that humans were an acceptable meat source. She was surprised that they will eat other Rancor that are not members of their herd. There are many herdless Rancor, sometimes one will approach the herd to see if she will accept them into her herd. If hunting has been poor, and all her Rancor are hungry, she feels she has no choice but to order the Rancor killed to feed her herd. If hunting has been good, and everyone's belly is full. If an outsider approaches, she will seriously consider whether they would be a good addition to her herd. On occasion, she has told the Rancor to run away quickly, before they become her next meal. The Clan Mother also found out that they will eat none meat items, but they can never find them in large enough quantities to feed more than one Rancor. The Clan Mother decided to try some experiments. She offered her some bread, but she did not like it, and threw it away. She found the Herd Mother watch the bread intently, and did not speak with her. Suddenly she jabbed with a claw, and speared a small creature, that had tried to steal the bread. The Herd Mother ate the creature whole. She said it tasted good, but was not very filling. Next she brought her some porridge. The Herd Mother said that she liked the taste, but could not get enough on her claw to satisfy her. She let her try other porridges made from different grains. Most of them she liked the taste but could not get enough. The Clan Mother went back to the women working in the communal kitchen, to see if they could make cakes out of the porridge. They said they could, and asked her what size and shape she wanted it to be. She said she did not want it high, but she did want it round. More like a large pie in shape, and she wanted some made from each of the porridges she would point out. The next day she took stacks of the different porridge cakes, and went to visit the Herd Mother. She asked her to try the cakes she had made for her. The Herd Mother was happy to see that it was easy to spear with her claws. It had good taste and there was enough that she felt like she was eating something that might eventually fill her. She was happy to try the different cakes, and noticed that there was enough difference in taste, that it made eating them more interesting. While she ate the cakes, she called a male Rancor over. She asked him to tell her about his first encounter with a human. He told her that he was hungry and was out hunting. He came across a human like her that carried a large stick. When he went to attacker her, instead of running away like he thought she would. She jumped onto his arm, and ran up to his shoulder. Then she started beating him on his head with her stick. He found it annoying, and for some reason he thought about the females in his herd, and how sometimes they can be annoying. He finally was able to get the human off of him. The creature did not move when it fell, it was still alive and did not appear injured. He figured that he had stunned it. Which was good, because the best thing to do with an annoying female was to leave it alone. The Clan Mother did not know what to do. She had herd this story from the human's perspective. Because it was her mother, only his version, was much more funny. She found it hard not to laugh, so when she heard the Herd Mother laugh, she knew it was okay to laugh. Now she knew Rancor had a sense of humour. She thanked the Rancor for not killing the annoying female, because she is her mother. She always wondered why he did not kill her when he had a chance. Now it will be her pleasure to tell her mother. The male Rancor laughed when he heard this, and then left them. The two Mothers talked for a long time. They talked about how they could help one another live on this land. The Clan Mother asked her new friend how many cakes she thought it would take to fill her, the Herd Mother told her that what she brought her was enough for one Rancor for one meal. It was not something that they could eat all the time. She did think it would be a good meal to eat in the morning. Than the hunters bellies would be full when they went hunting. They would be better hunters, and more willing to bring back whatever they caught, to share with the herd. She told the Herd Mother that her Sisters are very good hunters. If the Rancor hunters were willing to hunt with her hunters, they should not have any problem feeding both their peoples. She also felt that with the Rancor's help they would be able to plant and grow more food than they could eat. The Herd Mother said that she would be willing to agree to that cooperation. The Clan Mother told her that she needs to talk with her people to make sure they have enough food to share with them. It would not be right if they had only enough food to share with them for only a couple of cycles of the large moon. The Herd Mother agreed. That evening the Clan Mother shared all her knowledge of the Rancor with her clan. Her mother laughed when she heard the reason why her life was spared. She told the ladies from the kitchen, that all the cakes they made for her was just enough to feed one Rancor, than she told them how many Rancor were in the herd. Would they be able to make enough cakes, every day, along with what they were already making for the clan, to make sure everyone was fed? The lady looking after the kitchen said that with a couple more bodies helping in the kitchen. They would have no problem. She then asked her how much grain they would need, every day, to feed everyone. She told her how many sacks of each grain they would probably consume every day. The Clan Mother asked the farmers if they had enough grain. Now they had just finished the harvest for one type of grain, and it was a good crop. The grains that were ripening in the field at this time also looked like a good crop. On Dathomir they are able to harvest two crop cycles in one year. The farmers told her that they will have more than enough grain to last them until the next harvest. Now if the Rancor help them to plant larger fields, they will be able to store enough grain that even if a drought comes, they will be able to live through it. The Clan Mother asked the kitchen staff, if they could make enough porridge cakes this evening, to feed the Rancor herd in the morning? This way they will know that the clan is serious about an agreement of cooperation. Everyone who did not have anything to do, went to the kitchen to help. Now the clan's people had mixed emotions. They were excited by what they could accomplish with the help of these beasts, but they were also dreadfully terrified of them. Fortunately, they did trust their Clan Mother. She was a good kind woman, who had a great skill for reading people whenever there was a dispute. If she trusted the Rancor, they would also."

"The Clan Mother could hardly sleep that night she was so excited. Just before sunrise, she woke the Sisters. They went to the kitchen to retrieve all the porridge cakes that were made the night before. They were surprised to see the breakfast crew already there, preparing breakfast. The women gave them fresh baked bread with slabs of jam, for the Sisters to eat on the way to the Rancor. The sun was already rising when they reached the Rancor herd. The Clan Mother approached the sentry, and asked if it was okay for her and her Sisters to enter the herd, and approach the Herd Mother. The Sentry said they could go, and that the Herd Mother was expecting them. The Sisters were surprised that by using the force as Mother had said, they could hear the conversation between Mother and the Rancor sentry. The herd was just waking up, and none of them made any attempt to grab them. The Herd Mother asked them to lay out all their cakes before her, but not too close together. She then invited the Clan Mother to climb on her back and speak to her herd. The Clan Mother said she did not know if she could talk to the whole herd at once. She only has practise speaking to only one at a time. The Herd Mother told her to speak to her, then she would pass her message along to the herd. So the Clan Mother Climbed up on the Herd Mother's back and spoke to the herd. When she was finished, the Herd Mother told her that she should get off of her back. When she did the Herd Mother addressed the herd. She told them that the food the humans brought them, will fill their tummies, and help them be strong for the day. She then stabbed a porridge cake, and ate it. When none of the Rancor responded, she stabbed another and offered it to her oldest daughter. Because her mother offered it, she could not say no. First she sniffed it. Then she ate it. After she swallowed it, her mother asked her, how she liked it? Her daughter asked her if she could have another. Her mother told her that there is enough for the whole herd, just don't eat too much at once. The herd approached and started helping themselves, it did not take long before they figured out that different stacks had different tastes. The Herd Mother turned to two of the Sisters, and asked if they could take some cakes out to the two sentries, so that they do not go hungry. After the herd finished eating, the Clan Mother asked the Herd Mother if she could ride on her back, back to their village. The Herd Mother said no. "That would give the herd the impression that you think I am your servant, which would make them angry. Ask another Rancor, but only one, and bond with that Rancor." The Clan Mother knew right away which Rancor she wanted to bond with. She approached the Rancor that spared her mother's life, and asked him if she could bond with him. The Rancor said yes. Then the Herd Mother asked her to name him. She had heard that humans liked to give things names. The Clan Mother called him "Funny Man" because he made her laugh. The Herd Mother told the herd the name she had given him and why. The whole herd laughed. She told the Clan Mother that the herd thinks it is a good name for him. So he stooped so that she could climb up on his back. The Herd Mother invited the Sisters to choose Rancor's to bond with. The Clan Mother pointed out which ones were her best hunters, and suggested that they be paired with the herd's best hunters. The Herd Mother agreed, and showed them her best hunters. It was not long before every Sister found a Rancor to bond with, and they all accepted their names. When they reached the village. The hunters were dispatched to bring meat for everyone. The Clan Mother told the Herd Mother that she did not think it was fair that they should live outside her village, when they were now part of it. She showed her where she thought they should move part of the palisade that surrounds their village, so that they would have room to live in the village. The Herd Mother agreed. Together the Rancor and the Sisters dismantled a section of the palisade, and rebuilt it where the Clan Mother thought it should go. They accomplished in two days, what had taken the clan a number of months to do. More than doubling the size of the village. At first the villagers were nervous, because the only thing that separated where they lived from the Rancor, was a small stream. In a month's time they wondered how they ever accomplished anything without the Rancor. At the next Council of Mothers. It was quite a shock for them to see the entire Singing Mountain Clan entourage, show up, riding on Rancor. It was only when the front group dismounted that they saw that three of the Rancor were carrying two riders, and the second rider was not a force user. The Clan Mother dismissed the Sisters that were still on their Rancor mounts, so that they can go hunting. The other Clan Mothers tentatively approached the Clan Mother to the Singing Mountain Clan. They have never been this close to a Rancor before. One of the Mothers asked if they were tame. The Singing Mountain Clan Mother said they were not, but they were cooperative. She told them how to use the force to communicate. Then she introduced them to Funny Man, and asked him to tell them the story of him encountering her mother. One of the Sisters who had accompanied her Clan Mother to this meeting, started laughing at the end of the story, than stopped. No one else was laughing. One of the Clan Mothers could not hold back anymore and burst out laughing. That opened the flood gates, and the rest of the women started laughing too. They were surprised to hear the Rancor laughing with them. "Now you know why I called him "Funny Man". He loves to make me laugh." The Mothers all wanted to go to their meeting place in town to start their meeting. But the town's people refused to open the gate and let the Rancor inside. The members of the Singing Mountain Clan said that they will not abandon their Rancor, and refused to enter the town without them. The only option left was for the Mothers to hold their meeting outside where the Rancor were. The town's people were delighted, because they had never been allowed in to witness a meeting. Some were telling the others, that they heard the Mothers get naked when they meet. Soon everyone who lived in the town was up standing on the town wall. The men were disappointed when the Mothers just sat in a circle and started talking. The women were relieved. They all listened intently as The Singing Mountain Clan Mother told the story of how she first started to communicate with the Rancor, and how that led to long talks with the Herd Mother. This in turn led to the cooperative agreement between the clan and the herd. She told the council, how in two days, the Sisters and the Rancor had moved a portion of the village's palisade. Which had taken the clan months to put up. She told how the Rancor helped them plant the new crop my using their talons to plow the fields. Their fields are more than twice the size they used to be, and planting was completed in less than 1/3 of the time it took them before. They have more than enough food for everyone, both man and beast. Now they are storing the excess food in case they have a bad harvest. Then she looked at the other Mothers. "You know what happens when you have an abundance of food." One of the Mothers put both hands on her cheeks, and exclaimed, "Babies." Which made everyone laugh."

"Yes Krillgan?"

"How does having more food make babies?"

"They don't know for sure, but there are lots of theories. Some people think that when there is more food, the women are healthier, so more likely to have babies. Some people think that the body knows that the woman has more nourishment, that it can share with the baby. Others think that a woman's stress level decreases drastically when there is an abundance of food."

"If we give mother more food, will she have a baby?"

"Your mother is healthy, and has an abundance of food available to her. I'm afraid that if you made her eat more food, she would grow in the tummy, but not because of a baby."

Krillgan was disappointed. He thought he found a way to help his mother have a baby. He would have gladly let her eat all of his vegetables, if it would have helped her.

"After the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan finished talking, the town's people started arguing amongst themselves, about whether they should let them bring the Rancor inside the town. Most of them did not hear one of the Clan Mothers ask, why they brought women who were not Sisters? She told them that they were here to make breakfast for the Rancors. "Isn't that why you sent the two Sisters out hunting?" In our village, the Rancor only eat meat in the evening. In the morning we serve them porridge cakes. The Herd Mother believes that this is a better diet, then what they ate on their own. As evidence she pointed out that the herd is growing."

Andriel leaned over and whispered to Krillgan, "More Babies."

"The Clan Mothers wanted to watch the ladies make the porridge cakes, that they serve the Rancor. The Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan, decided she wanted to tease the other Mothers. "If you provide the grain, and the kitchen, than you can watch." The Mothers asked the cooks, how much grain do they need? The cooks told them how much of the different grains they use, would be enough to feed the Rancor. They asked why they use different grains? The Clan Mother told them that the Rancor can taste the difference in porridge cakes, and like that they are getting different tastes. The Mothers started talking amongst themselves and the Sisters they brought with them, to see what they could scrounge up between them. They were not even close. They called to the town's people on the wall, and asked if they would let them trade for grain, and the use of a kitchen? They asked them how much grain they wanted to trade for, and why use their kitchen.

"Weren't you listening? These women are going to prepare breakfast for the Rancor."

"Are they going to prepare some meat with gravy for them?"

One of the Mothers whispered, "And they wonder why we never let them attend our meetings."

Another Mother told them that the cooks were going to make porridge cakes out of the grains, for the Rancor's breakfast, and they want to watch them prepare it. The town's people wanted to watch it too. The Mothers said they could only watch if there was enough room. A representative of the town came down to negotiate a trade with the Mothers. He was disappointed that they never really had anything to trade. The Mothers were hoping that they could send them something, after they returned to their clans. The representative told them what the town was short of, and after today they would be short on grain as well. He let them come in, because the town was already at the community kitchen, sitting in the rafters, waiting for them. The cooks never had such a large audience to cook before. One of them did not like it. Another loved all the attention. The one in charge did not care, as long as they did not get in the way. After watching the procedure the women used for making the different porridge cakes. The Clan Mothers sent two Sisters each, back to their clans. One was to scout the area around their clans to see if there were any Rancor herds near their clans, and what size they were. The other was to take an inventory of all their grains. The Clan Mothers wanted to wait until after they watched the Rancor eat breakfast, before they would return. One of the town's people said that it looked like they could eat the cakes as well. The one in charge of the cooking answered, that with a couple of these cakes, and a wedge of cheese, a person could travel for a whole cycle, without having to stop to prepare themselves a meal. The other clans did eventually find Rancor herds that would be willing to cooperate with them."

"Life in the clans would improve. But before that happened, the raids started. One night a pirate ship landed next to the Town. They had light amplifying googles, so that they could see in the dark. They found all of the town's people sleeping. They ruffed up a number of people in the town, because they could not believe that they had nothing of value. They ransacked the town and raped a number of women. Killing a man who tried to protect his wife."

"Yes son?"

"What does ransacked mean?"

"It means they broke things apart, to see if they were hiding anything of value."

"What does rape mean?"

"I can't give you a good description, until you are older. But I can tell you that they were bad to them and really hurt them, which is why the man who was killed, was trying to protect his wife. It is a very bad thing."

"Apparently one of the women after she had been raped was crying, asking why they didn't go North, to where all the pretty women are. Now the Red Hill Clan is almost due North of the Town. The next evening The Clan Mother of the Red Hill Clan, was feeling very uneasy. She felt that her clan was in danger, but did not know from what. She would not let any of her Sisters go to sleep. She wanted them all on the palisade that surrounded their village. When mid night came and nothing happened. She did give permission for two Sisters to rest on the wall, while the third stood watch. The Clan Mother kept watch herself. One of the Sisters thought she heard something, like it was coming down from the sky to the ground. No one could see anything, because the sky was overcast. Normally at least two of the four moons would be visible in the night sky, giving some light for them to see by. The Clan Mother told them to quietly alert the resting Sisters to be ready. Suddenly the Mother felt she needed to through a ball of force fire, at a specific location. She hit a man square in the chest, and his clothes caught fire. The men that were with him screamed in pain and tore something off their faces. The Sisters easily dispatched the other men they could see with arrows. The one who was burning, fell on the ground screaming in pain. A bolt of light shot out of the darkness, and killed him. The Mother whispered to the Sisters to use the force to see where their enemy is, to shot them. A couple of Sisters shot arrows into the dark, and were rewarded with the screams of pain. After that someone started shooting bolts of light at them, then others joined them. That was just what the Sisters needed to pinpoint where their enemy is. In very short order, half a dozen of the Sisters' arrows were flying toward each of the sources of the bolts of light. The firing stopped. The Clan Mother reached out with the force, but could not detect any life. She jumped off the palisade onto the ground outside her village. She held up her hand with blue cold force light in it, and looked around. She found a number of bodies with multiple arrows in them. Her Sisters did good. Since there were no bolts of light flying at her. She concluded that either all the attackers were dead. Or the ones who weren't had fled. She jumped back up, on top of the palisade, as if this a normal thing for her to do. She asked if there were any injuries. Two of the Sisters were grazed by the bolts of light, and had bad burns. But the rest of the Sisters were unharmed. She used what plants she had on hand to bandage the burn wounds, to assist in healing. She dispatched one of the Sisters to go to the Misty Falls Clan, to get more healing plants. She then posted six sentries, and sent the rest of the Sisters to bed. In the morning, when they went out to survey the scene. They could not find any evidence of anyone running away. They were able to follow their tracks back to the ship the attackers arrived on. Mother was very angry, because they had landed in a field of grain, trampling some grain. If they did not move the ship, it was blocking the sunlight from reaching the rest of the grain, the grain would not grow, and they would not be able to harvest it. This would set back their ability to recruit a herd of Rancor. Mother asked suggestions, for where they should move the ship. One Sister suggested a dead end canyon nearby. It held no value for the clan, so there was nothing to harm by leaving it there. Before they moved the ship. The Mother had them gather up all the weapons, and place them aboard the ship. Reminding the Sisters that the weapons were still dangerous, especially since they did not know how to use them. She did let them go aboard, in case they encounter another ship like this one, and had to fight aboard it. When they were ready, the Sisters combined their force strength, and lifted the ship, and carried it to where they wanted it to be. They did not know how to seal it, so some of the local wildlife ended up using it as a den. When they examined the dead bodies, they found metal discs in their pockets with the image of a human head. They wondered if this was the deity they worshipped. They found small tubes of dried fungus wrapped in paper, and wondered what its purpose was, because most of the bodies had them? They found pieces of metal stuck in some of the men's ears. At first they thought there must have been some accident, but when they examined the ears. They noticed that it was not a fresh wound, but an old wound. So the metal was placed there on purpose. On Dathomir if the skin was cut anywhere, you had to treat it right away, or it would become infected. No one would purposely cut their ear. That would be a good way to lose the whole ear. All the bodies had knives in sheaths, and every Sister wanted one. So the Clan Mother made them take them to the temple, so they would not fight over them. They could borrow one if they had a good reason. They also found folded knives in some of their pockets. Again their Mother said they had to be placed in the temple. The Sisters who went hunting could take a knife for the duration of the hunt. The rings on their hands were too big to fit on the hands of any of the Sisters, and they saw no purpose for them except as ornaments. So they were placed in a storage box along with the fungus tubes, the ear metal, and the deity discs. Mother did not want them to burn their bodies, in case the ashes contaminated the soil. So they took all of the dead bodies and dumped them into the ocean."

"A few days later the Sisters from another of the clans saw a column of smoke just over the horizon. They knew a small family that had chosen not to be a part of any clan lived there. They were a friendly family, and enjoyed it when the Sisters would come visit them. The husband played an instrument. If the Sister stayed for dinner, after dinner the husband would play his instrument. Sometimes he and his wife would sing a song they made up, accompanied by the instrument. So the Sisters would often visit, but not too many at one time, because that would be too great of a burden on such a small family. Often they would leave the smaller creatures they had killed while hunting, as payment for their meal and the entertainment. So the Sisters ran as fast as they could, because they knew that something was wrong. They found evidence that someone had deliberately broken up the inside of the dwelling, and lit it on fire. Fortunately there was not too many things in the house that could burn, and because of the recent rains, the straw roof was just smouldering, which created the column of smoke. They found the husband's broken instrument. One of the Sisters kept it, maybe someone in the village could salvage something from it. There were no bodies. Which meant someone took them. But who? Outside they saw another column of smoke. The family had mentioned that there were a couple of families living not that far from them. They had been thinking of joining them, because it would make life easier, especially when it came to raising their children. But they also liked living on their own. So the Sisters went to the second column of smoke hoping that they would find their friends there. What they found was the same thing, as at their friends dwelling, only there were more buildings, all with smouldering straw roofs, and no bodies anywhere. But this time they found some blood, so they knew there had been a struggle. It was after midday, by the time the Sisters ran back to their village and reported to their Mother what they found."

Captain Richard explained to Krillgan that the Sisters know how to use the force to help them with physical activities. They can run in one afternoon, what would take him two days to walk, if he did not stop to rest or sleep, and they would not be that winded. He expected that if they accepted him into their clan, they would teach him to do the same thing.

"The Clan Mother sent runners to every clan, to warn them. There was not yet a reason to call a Council of Mothers, because they did not know what they were up against. She gave the runner going to the Singing Mountain Clan, permission to rest and resupply at the town, since they were the farthest away. The runner rarely had to run all the way to the clan's village. Usually they would encounter Sisters from the clan they were going to, out in the open. Runners also had something on them so that any Sister they encountered from a different clan, knew they were not to be harmed. Back then they all had small silk flags that they would attach to the back of their head band, so that it would flutter behind them as they ran. If the Sisters from one clan entered the hunting territory of another clan, you can be sure there is going to be a fight, unless the encroaching Sisters can give a good reason why they are there. Sometimes when the Sisters are chasing a dangerous predator, that has attacked the people of a village. The two groups of hunters will combine forces, and split the body of the predator between them, after they kill it."

"Yes son?"

"What does encroaching mean?"

Chitrah thought for a moment. "Let's say one hunter thought this was their hunting territory." Chitrah drew a circle on the blanket covering the Captain's bed. It was hard to see but Krillgan could picture it in his mind. "Now say there is another hunter that was not having good success hunting in their territory, and decided to hunt in a new territory." Chitrah drew another circle. Krillgan could see that the two circles overlap. "That area where the two circles overlap, is where the new territory is encroaching on the old territory. If the hunter does not protect his territory, than the new hunter will take it from him."

"Can't they share?"

"Only if there is enough animals for both of them. Usually there is not, even if at first it might look like there is. Two hunters could easily kill enough animals between them. So that the remaining animals will not be able to survive on their own, and leave that area. Making that area useless for both hunters."

"Thank you father."

Krillgan learnt two things from this explanation. He learnt what encroachment meant, and he learnt that territory is important.

The Captain had to think for a moment, about where he was in the story.

Andriel said, "Runners."

Then Captained remembered.

"If Sisters see a runner coming, they will run up to her. They will hear the message, and find out if a reply is expected. Often if a Sister is out hunting by herself, she will give what provisions she had brought with her to the runner, so that she can re-nourish herself. Then the hunter will run back to the village with the message. If a reply is required, she knows where the runner is resting. If a reply is not required, she knows that she will find what the runner did not need from her provisions, waiting for her, so she can continue hunting. The Sister that the Mother of the Red Hills Clan had sent to the Misty Falls Clan, returned with the healing plants, just before dinner. The Misty Falls Clan did not ask for compensation, because they were attacked by off-worlders. The Clan Mother should have been happy, that things seemed to be returning back to normal. But she was starting to feel the same way she did, the night they were attacked. She talked to some of the Sisters that were close to her. They said that they too could feel it. So she sent all the sisters up on the wall. This time she let two rest, while the third stood watch. This time there were few clouds in the sky, and it looked like they would have three moons giving them light for most of the night. After the middle of the night, one Sister saw a dark object in the sky, blocking the starlight behind it. She quickly and quietly sent word to Mother. It was not long before all the Sisters were awake and alert, watching the dark object. It was not long before the Sisters realised that this one was much larger than the one that attacked them. It looked like it settled on the same spot as the last one, which really upset their Mother. With the damage to the field from the last ship, and now this one. There might not be any grain left to harvest. They might not be in a position to recruit Rancor, until next harvest. The Sisters waited, they knew that a bigger ship meant more attackers. Mother remembered how the last attackers tore the things they wore over their eyes, off of their faces, when she threw the force fire ball. She sent an order down the wall. Throw fireballs before shooting arrows. She knew that the attackers will be closer to the wall. But if it disorientates them, then the Sisters have a much better chance of surviving the night."

"What the Sisters did not know, was that the slavers could see their infrared images crouching below the top of the palisade, on the walkway behind it. The best way to enter a walled town, when you are expected, is to get rid of the wall. A couple of slavers had missile launchers, and they were trying to manoeuvre close enough to launch a spread of missiles. That would get rid of the wall in front of them, and the defenders on the wall. Then they could just march in and round up all the people, and see if there really were a lot of pretty young ladies north of the town, like the pirates said. They wondered why the pirates broke contact with them. There was no indication they left the system. They were right about it being a primitive planet."

"The Sisters threw their force fireballs at the same time as the first slaver fired a missile at the wall. The fireballs did blind the attackers like Mother hoped. The second slaver with a missile launcher, fired his first missile high over the wall because he was blinded by the fireballs. The first missile, from the first missile launcher, impacted near the base of the palisade, sending five Sisters flying through the air, along with a deadly shower of wood splinters. The two missile launching slavers were each hit with at least three fireballs, if not more, and turned into human, screaming, torches. The missiles that were still in their launch tubes, exploded from the heat, sending showers of burning flesh on the remaining slavers. These slavers were better at using the terrain, to protect themselves, then the pirates were. So not all of the Sisters' arrows found their mark. The ones that did, only wounded the enemy, not kill them. The Sisters that were thrown from the wall by the missile's explosion, got up despite their injuries, and charged the enemy, other Sisters quickly jumped over the wall to join them. The slavers concentrated their fire on the first five, since they were the closest. The one Sister was able to intercept three blaster bolts with her sword. With the blade getting hotter with each blaster bolt that hit it, and was glowing red hot after the third one. The forth blaster bolt that impacted the blade of her sword, caused the blade to splatter. Spraying molten metal on the Sister's face and upper body. Another Sister's sword shattered with the impact of the first blaster bolt it intercepted. Spraying her with metal slivers, permanently damaging one eye."

Andriel wanted to put her hands over Krillgan's ears, so he would not hear the gory details. But he was sitting on his father's lap resting his head against his father's chest, and Chitrah made no attempt to stop him from hearing.

"Another Sister's fighting stick turned to splinters with the first blaster bolt impact. Causing wood splinters to imbed themselves in her hands. For some reason the slavers concentrated their firepower on her. Her body was impacted by many hits from blaster bolt fire. But before she died, she sent a surge of force lightning at the closest slaver, burning him to a crisp. The slavers were not expecting the Sisters to close on them so quickly. The Sister that had lost an eye was giving backhands to ever slaver she met. She was so angry that she was breaking the necks of these 80+ kg men, sending their bodies flying at least two meters in the air. The Sister sprayed with molten metal could not move her upper body very well. So she killed the slavers with force lightning. The other slavers had no time to bring their weapons to bear on these two ladies, before the other Sisters, who jumped over the wall, were upon them. The lucky slavers shifted their positions enough, to where the Sisters on the wall were able to take them out with arrows. Most of the other slavers lost their heads to the remaining Sisters, and not to swords. It is a terrible thing to see what an angry Sister can do with a fighting stick. Mother told the healers to look after the injured. She had two Sisters follow her aboard the ship, in case there were more slavers there. Instead of finding slavers they found three badly dehydrated families. Locked in a slaver's cell. Since they did not know how to unlock the cell. The one Sister grabbed the bars of the door and using force energy, was finally able to rip the door off. The families all came out and hugged and kissed the Clan Mother, and the two Sisters. They had tears streaming down their faces, which was quite remarkable considering how dehydrated they were."

Andriel felt she could not put it off any longer.

"Captain, my son needs his rest. Is this going to take much longer, or can we break for his sake."

The Captain had not realised he had been talking for so long. He said that they should take a break. He was going to get a bite to eat. They can find him on the bridge, when they are ready to hear the rest of the story. He promised that it should not be as long, since he felt they have already heard most of it. Krillgan made him promise, not to tell Coris and Pula his story, until he was there to hear it too. The Captain promised.

Chitrah carried his son next door, to Andriel's Cabin. Sitting him on the bed, then going to get some meals for him and his wife. Andriel made Krillgan eat some fresh fruit, while she started undressing him. She asked him if he liked the story so far. He said he really did, but wished he understood more. By the time Chitrah came back with a full tray, she had already started putting on his sleep clothes. Chitrah had brought juice and water for Krillgan, tea and water for him and Andriel. They both made him take a couple of bites from their meals, because they said he would rest better if his tummy was full. Chitrah promised him that if he was still hungry after finishing his meal, he would only eat Krillgan's vegetables. They both knew Krillgan wasn't fond of eating raw vegetables. But he loved his fruit, and was always disappointed, when he found, that one of his parents, had helped themselves. He wondered why both parents wanted to be here when he took his nap, and this is the first time they ate in his mother's cabin. They had always insisted that they eat in the crew lounge. He was too tired to ask right now. Maybe he will remember to ask them when he wakes up. With that thought he fell asleep.

The reason both parents were there, was because Krillgan had some horrific images described to him, in the story. They knew that the brain processes images while you sleep. If it looks like Krillgan becomes emotionally disturbed during his nap, they wanted to wake him up to let him know he was dreaming, and they were watching over him. After they knew that Krillgan was sleeping, Andriel whispered to Chitrah that she did not like the idea of her son standing naked in a room full of naked women, four times a year. Chitrah whispered back that he did not like it either, but could understand why they did it. Besides he did not think they had a choice. There are not too many places in the galaxy that they can go and not have the Sith find them. From what the Captain has described so far, if the Sith knew about this planet, they have probably already forgotten about it, and would not consider it as a possible destination for one of their best computer technicians. Not only that, they both want their son to be well grounded in his knowledge of the force, and there were not very many options for that to happen. This world provided both. Captain Richard knew what he was doing, when he decided to bring them to this planet. Andriel reluctantly agreed. After they both finished their meals, Andriel went and sat beside him, she needed to nap. She rested her head against his chest, while he put his arm around her to hold her in place. She quickly fell asleep. It was not long before Chitrah rested his head on top of hers, and fell asleep.

That is how Krillgan found them when he woke up. He had slept well, knowing his parents were nearby. He grabbed a fresh fruit out of the bag, and ate it. Then he dressed himself. Then he went and gently shook his parents awake. When they opened their eyes and looked at him. He told them, "I am ready to hear the rest of the story now."

Chitrah suggested that they have another meal, like they did before they took their nap. Krillgan told them he already ate some fruit, but could probably eat more. Andriel thought it was a good idea. Chitrah said he would let the Captain know that they were going to have a bite to eat, then would be ready to hear the rest of the story. In case he wants to eat as well. After Chitrah left, Andriel asked her son if he had gone to the bathroom since he got up. He shook his head no. Andriel suggested he go before his father comes back with the food. He was about to say he did not need to. Then he realised that he did. When he entered the bathroom, he had to go real bad. While he was sitting there, he wondered, how did she know?

When he came out, father was back. He had a full tray of food and drinks for all of them. He sat their nibbling on a raw vegetable, and asked Krillgan if he wanted some. Krillgan shook his had no, but mother told him that he needs to eat vegetables, and not just fruit. He reluctantly accepted the half eaten vegetable from his father. He was glad that his mother was not making him eat a whole one.

While he munched away on the vegetable, his parents started eating their meals. He watched as they both set aside portions for him while they ate. When he finished the vegetable, they both took turns feeding him from the portions they put aside. He knew that this was just another way that they chose to show that they loved him, and he loved it. After they finished, mother took her turn in the bathroom, while father took the tray away with everything on it. He returned with hot tea for himself and Andriel, and a new container of juice for Krillgan. At the same time mother came out of the bathroom. So father went in.

Mother whispered to Krillgan, "I'm glad he let me use it first. Because I don't like going in there after he has used it."

Krillgan crinkled his nose. "I don't like using it after him either."

When they were all ready. They grabbed their drinks and headed next door to the Captain's cabin. After knocking, he told them to come in. He was sitting sipping on some tea. When they entered the room, they saw a tray behind the Captain, with an empty food container on it. When they sat down, Andriel told him that he finished where the Sister had yanked the door off the cell, freeing the three families inside.

"When they left the ship, the Clan Mother held up her hand with cold force light in her palm, so the families could see where they were going. As they approached the scene of the fighting, one of the women tapped her on the shoulder, which caused her to stop. "Please Sister, can we go around, for the sake of the children." The Clan Mother did not correct her. "I'm sorry my thoughts were elsewhere."

"Did you lose anyone?"

"One that I know of."

So she led them around. She sent the two Sisters to go help where they could. Before they left, they said, "Yes Mother." The lady was embarrassed by the mistake she made, and apologised. The Mother said that it was alright, because she is still a Sister. The woman noticed that she had tears in her eyes as they walked back to the village. The missile blast had woken everyone up in the village. They were all standing in the gap of the palisade. They could hear some babies crying as they approached the people. Mother saw the woman in charge of the kitchen. She told her that the families need something to drink right now, then they will need something to eat, she told the families to follow that woman. She turned to another member of the village, they are going to need a comfortable place to sleep. "You can take some pillows and blankets from my dwelling, if you cannot find enough." She then told the rest of them to go back to sleep, there will be enough for them to do in the morning. "What about the gap in the palisade?" "It will still be there in the morning, and so will the Sisters." When she went back to the Sisters, she saw one who was bandaged and resting. She asked her if she could go rest in the gap of the palisade, so when the villagers who have trouble sleeping, come out to check the gap, they will see that someone is there. Because she could not do anything to help, she agreed. There were two Sisters standing there, that the healers had cut off their clothing. Two Sisters where holding up each of the women, using the force. Two more where removing the wood splinters imbedded in their backs. Another was removing metal splinters from the front of the one Sister. The other standing Sister had two Sisters working on her front. One was removing the metal that had solidified on contact with her skin. The other was applying healing ointment, where the metal had been. The woman had fainted from the pain. If the two Sisters stopped using the force to hold her up, she would collapse on the ground. Mother was glad the Sister had fainted, she could not imagine the pain she is in. There is no doubt that she will be disfigured for the rest of her life. She and the Sister that was killed by the attackers' weapon fire, shared the same lover, and they all had a good relationship. She will need to speak to him. If he will continue to be her lover. She will grant them special permission to marry, so that they will not feel obligated to bring someone else into their relationship. It was when she approached another healer, that Mother learnt that a second Sister had perished. She did not know why. All she found was a cut on her neck. But she did manage to rip the heads off of two attackers, with her fighting stick, before she died."

Krillgan had just squeezed his father's shoulder, than told him that the Captain just answered his question.

"It was not until the morning, when they had sunlight to see by, that they figured out what had happened. Debris from the missile explosion, cut the vein in the neck of the dead Sister that takes the blood from the brain back to the heart. The front of her outfit was covered in blood, the place on the wall where she was crouching, also had a lot of blood, but there was no spurt marks, so it was not an artery. They could see the blood trail on the ground, and then it stopped before she reached the attackers. She had run out of blood. If someone had seen her bleeding, they could have stopped her and saved her life. She probably had so much adrenaline in her system that she did not know she was cut. The other injured Sisters all had wood splinters from the explosion. One of the five Sisters that were thrown through the air by the explosion, had a broken collar bone, because she could not see the ground before she slammed into it. The next morning a group of healers from the Misty Falls Clan showed up with more plants. The warning from a runner came, after their Sister had left with the plants. They knew the new attacks had to be done by someone else. "Mother feared that you might be attacked by someone else, so she sent us with more plants to help." Now the Misty Falls Clan has more Sisters that are healers than any other clan. They are also recognised as being some of the best. The Clan Mother of the Red Hills Clan, told the healers that they had no warning from a runner, about other attacks. The healers told her that they found the runner that was coming to them. She had been attacked by a predator on the way. She was badly mauled, but managed to kill the predator. They left one of their healers to attend to her, along with most of their water and weapons. In case the predator had a mate. The Clan Mother knew that most runners do not carry weapons, because they feel protected by clan law. Only predators do not recognise clan law. Because of this the Clan Mother gave permission for every one of her Sisters to carry the sheathed knife they found on all attackers bodies. They had a few extra in the temple, because of this second attack. So she also presented one as a present for the healers to take back to their Mother. The healers helped them move the slavers' ship and park it beside the pirate ship. One of the healers knew how to make an ointment that can dull the feeling in the skin, because the Sister that was splashed with molten metal was still in considerable pain. They also gave her a general pain killer, and some medicine to help her sleep. The Clan Mother was happy to see her lover by her side, holding her hand. She asked to speak with him privately, and told him what she was prepared to do for them. He hugged her and told her that he was sure that she would agree to marry him. When the healers examined the Sister with the damaged eye. They told her that they could heal her eyeball, but she would not be able to see out of it again. After the healers did what they could, including sharing the recipe for the numbing ointment. They decided to return to their clan. The Clan Mother had one more request to make of them. They asked that their Clan Mother send runners on their behalf to all the clans, asking that a special meeting of the Council of Mothers take place here at the Red Hills Clan. This is an unusual request, because a meeting has never been held on a clan's territory before. To show her commitment to this, and so all of the Mothers will know that they will be meeting on neutral ground. From now, until after the meeting takes place. The Clan Mother of the Red Hills Clan declares that her clan's territory is now neutral ground, any Sister from any clan coming on their territory will not be challenged."

"One of the families that was rescued, asked the healers if they could travel with them. Some of the Sisters in a clan were friends with them. That's the clan that they would now like to be part of. The healers did not tell them that they would really slow them down, because they were planning on running all the way back to the clan. They knew that the family was still traumatized from their ordeal, and the Clan Mother had told them, that when she was alone with the women, they all confessed to being raped by the slavers. They believed their husbands knew, but were afraid to ask. The healers hoped that one day they will be able to sit down together and cry over it, so as a family they will be healed. The healers told the family that they would be proud to have their company. Then they can accompany the wounded runner back to their new clan."

"The Singing Mountain Clan was the first clan to hear about the attack on the town because of the runner that stopped there, to resupply and rest, before continuing on to the Singing Mountain Clan. She sent one of her Sisters to warn the clanless settlement that was on the plateau above the southern coastal swamp, near one of two trails that led down to the swamp. To let them know that offworlders had attacked the town, ransacking and raping the women. They are also believed responsible for attacking and taking the people from a couple of clanless settlements. The Clan Mother had long conversations with the Herd Mother about what they could do to help protect the town. She would not feel right about sending any of her Sisters to help protect the town. First, it would violate the neutrality of the town. Second, it would weaken her own ability to protect her village. The Herd Mother suggested that they need their own herd to protect them. The Clan Mother pointed out that they have no force users. The Herd Mother told her that there are those in her own clan that are not force users, but can communicate with the members of the herd. "They use their hands and bodies to communicate with us, and can interpret our body motions and sounds to understand what we are trying to communicate to them. The other clan members call them beastmasters." The Clan Mother thought about that for a moment. This would depend on there being a beastmaster in the Town. She asked the Herd Mother, how large of a herd would be required to protect the town. The Herd Mother told her that from her description of the town, five or six Rancor should be sufficient. The Clan Mother said she has never encountered a Rancor herd that small. The Herd Mother doubted that they would find one that small. They would have to make one. The Clan Mother asked her if she was suggesting they find five or six herdless Rancour. Bring them together, and ask them to form a herd. The Herd Mother confirmed that that is exactly what she was thinking. If they know they will be sleeping inside the walls of a human enclosure, they will not fear being attacked by other Rancor while they sleep. She was sure they would agree to it, as long as there are at least two females in the herd. She asked her which one will become herd mother. The Herd Mother said that the first one to get pregnant will be the herd mother. The Clan Mother liked the idea. She set out the very next day with some of her Sisters and their Rancor mounts, and one beastmaster."

"They all took turns letting the beastmaster ride with them so that they would not tire out any of the Rancor. They found two herdless Rancor in Singing Mountain Clan's territory, on the way to the town. The first one they found, they surrounded. The Rancor was frightened, and had no way to escape. She told the beastmaster to have it sit down. The beastmaster approached the Rancor, and made some hand gestures. The Rancor sat down. The Clan Mother asked the Rancor why it sat down. It said the man told him to. She asked if it was afraid of the man. The Rancor said no, the man speaks as a friend. She then asked the Rancor if it would still obey the man if they were not there. The Rancor said it would. She asked it why? It replied, that it is good to have a friend. The Clan Mother told the Rancor that she needs its help. Will it help them? "So you will not eat me." "Not if you help." "I will help." She asked the Rancor to let the man ride him. The Rancor agreed and followed them. They did the same thing when they found the next Rancor. She also agreed to help. When they came to the town. The Clan Mother requested that they all assemble on the town wall. She spoke to the town's people. She told them that they had requested help from the clans. None of the clans can send them any Sisters, because that would violate the neutrality agreement amongst the clans for the town. But she has found a solution, providing they are willing to accept it. The town's people were sceptical, they wanted Sisters. But now knew they could not have them. They asked to hear her solution. She told them that she could provide them with a small Rancor herd, that should scare off any pirate attack provided the Rancor herd lived in the town. They will be responsible for feeding them, and providing enough work for them to do each day, so that they are sufficiently entertained. They asked what type of work they can do. She told them that they can help expand the town. With the town having its own herd of Rancor. None of the clans will be able to bring their own Rancor into town. When next they meet at the town, for a Council of Mothers. They will need to keep the Rancor from each clan separated. At the same time all the Rancor need to feel safe. To do that they will need to build a compound for every clan. Outside the town, yet connected to it. They can also do mundane things like plow your fields when you are ready to plant grain. Now the town did not have very big fields, because they did not have a blacksmith to maintain their plow. They needed to take it to one of the clans to have it repaired and sharpened, and the plow was pulled by men. If the Rancor could plow their fields for them, they would not be dependent upon the clans to feed them."

"One of the town's people told them that they do not have enough grain."

"The Clan Mother told them that she was willing to provide them with enough grain, through this planting and up until next harvest. Provided they do not charge them for the compound they build for them."

"What about the trees for the palisades around each compound?"

"There are enough trees between Singing Mountain Clan territory, and the town, that should be sufficient for building all the compounds. They just need to chop the trees down, and let the Rancor drag the logs to town."

"The town's people knew that the trees where actually in Singing Mountain Clan territory. She just gave them permission have the trees, provided they harvest them, themselves."

"How do we handle the Rancor, we have no force users?"

"You do not have to be a force user to communicate with them. We brought a man who is not a force user, yet can communicate with them. There is also one among you that can do the same." She said, "I hope," under her breath.

"While they were discussing it. The Clan Mother asked the beastmaster to have the Two Rancor follow him around, and have them sit down and stand up. The town's people stopped their discussion to watch what the man and the two Rancor were doing. They were amazed to see him control the Rancor with his hands. There was another short discussion, and they agreed to the Clan Mother's terms. The Clan Mother asked Funny Man if he would let the beastmaster ride him. Funny Man agreed. So she sent the group off to find more herdless Rancor while she stayed behind with the two Rancor. They were not a herd yet, so she had to keep an eye on them, and keep them calm. It was almost Sunset when they returned with three more Rancor, found in the Town's Neutral territory. Mother had been practising reaching out with the force to talk to groups of Rancor, all at the same time. She had her own people and Rancor give them room, if a Rancor was going to bolt, it would do it now. But with the beastmaster beside her, they all seemed resigned to accept their fate."

"She asked them, if they would be willing to be one herd? The two female Rancor readily agreed. The three males thought they were too small a group, and could not stand up to the larger herds, to maintain a territory. Mother reminded them that they were not alone, the town people would be bonded to them, and they would have their den in the center of the Town. They knew the large herds kept away from the human habitations. They believed the humans were capable of uniting to make one large herd and destroy them. They remembered hearing about small herds of humans coming together as one large herd, to fight against another large human herd that had come into their territory. There were humans in the two herds that possessed the power to kill a Rancor. The Rancor had remembered hearing stories about the Acolyte War. The three male Rancor were much more willing to be part of a herd, now that they knew the humans would be involved. Mother asked all the town's people to come outside the wall, and spread out fingertip to fingertip. She asked the Rancor, if there were any human's in the line that they trusted, and would obey? All the Rancor went and sat in front of the woman whose husband was killed trying to protect her. The Clan Mother asked the Rancor, why they chose her? They said that she was the only one who greeted them. They know that she will be their friend. Mother told the lady, that the Rancor like her, and would obey her commands. The lady was rather embarrassed that the Rancor had chosen her, but was also excited to see if she really could communicate with them. Mother told the town people that they were now responsible for looking after their Rancor. She also asked if they would be willing to make porridge cakes for her Singing Mountain Clan herd. After breakfast, she was planning on heading back to her clan, and arrange the grain shipments for them. She would leave her beastmaster with them for one month, to give their beastmaster time to adjust to her new charge."

Krillgan was hearing a lot of new words, but he was sure he knew what they meant, by the way the Captain used them.

"The woman led the Rancor to their town centre, where the Rancor were supposed to live. The Rancor seemed unhappy, and she asked the beastmaster what was wrong. He told her to ask them. She asked him how? He asked her, if she really wanted to communicate with them? She said of course. He told her to start with her heart, and let her body be her voice. She did as she was told, and received a response. "Did they just say this place is too small?" "That's how I read it." She was really excited now. She asked them if it was okay for one night. The Rancor responded it was, and they also wanted to construct a barrier because they were afraid of the people. Every time the Rancor communicated with her, she checked with the beastmaster. She was amazed that she actually understood them. Then she started to cry. The Rancor where concerned, and asked her what was wrong. She told them that her husband would have enjoyed talking with them, but pirates killed him. The Rancor made soothing sounds to help her feel better. The beastmaster said he was going to spend the night in the square so that the Rancor would be more comfortable. She told him that she was going to the kitchen to talk with the town's people. They would be there, preparing the porridge cakes, for the Rancor's breakfast. When she approached the families that lived in the houses adjacent to the square. Telling them, that they would need to move. She was surprised that they had all already decided to move, they were uncomfortable living so close to the Rancor. She then told them that the Rancor also wanted to construct a barrier around the enlarged square. When they asked her why? She told them the Rancor were uncomfortable living so close to humans. Some of the town's people listening to the conversation, started to laugh. They found it ironic that both groups were afraid of the same thing. The new beastmaster went back to her home, and gathered up enough bedding material for her and the male beastmaster to sleep comfortably in the square."

"The next morning, while everyone was having breakfast, a runner from the Misty Falls clan showed up. She was very happy to find that the Clan Mother for the Singing Mountain Clan was camped just outside of town. She went right up to her and told her about the special meeting of the Council of Mothers to be held at the village of the Red Hills Clan. When she explained to the Mother all the events that had transpired to bring about this historical meeting. The Clan Mother understood why one Mother was calling this meeting on behalf of the other Mother. The runner asked if it was really possible to talk with Rancor. The Clan Mother told her it was and explained how. The runner asked her permission to talk with her Rancor. The Clan Mother told her that they will all be busy, because they were breaking camp right now. Because of her message they will have to change some of their plans. When she saw how disappointed she looked. She suggested she try talking with the Rancor in town. The runner was surprised to hear about the Rancor in town, considering how they refused to allow the Singing Mountain Clan to bring their Rancor into town, when they showed up for the last meeting. This would give her the opportunity to grab breakfast from the town's kitchen, and talk with the Rancor while eating."

"The Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan, sent two of the Sisters back to the village to arrange the delivery of grain she promised the town. Then instructed them to join her at the meeting, at the Red Hills Clan. Everyone else rode with her to the Red Hills Clan. The Clan Mother of the Red Hills Clan was surprised to see her so soon. She was the first Mother to show up. Even though she knew this area was declared neutral territory, the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan asked the Clan Mother of the Red Hills Clan, for permission to send two Sisters and their Rancor mounts hunting for their dinner. The Clan Mother asked if she could send two of her hunters along, so that they can see how they hunt together. The Clan Mother knew that they had a greater chance of success if two hunters who knew this area acted as guides. The Clan Mother of the Red Hills Clan was surprised that the Clan Mother spoke directly with the Rancor, rather than with the Sisters on them. The reason the Clan Mother did not talk with her Sisters, was because she knew they were always ready to show off. The Rancor on the other hand, just finished carrying them all the way from the town. Both Rancor said their Sisters have kept them strong. They can carry an extra person if it means good hunting, but they will have to come back on their own. The guest Mother told the host Mother that her two hunters would be welcome. She even let the Clan Mother of the Red Hills Clan make the introduction to Rancor and rider, which the host Mother was thrilled about. The host Mother showed her guests where they can camp. The guest Mother asked her host if her cooks could make the porridge cakes for her Rancor. The host Mother thought it would be good practise for them, for when they had their own Rancor. She then admitted that her hopes of having their own Rancor have been delayed by one growing season. The Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan sent one of her Sisters to the host's kitchen so they can start preparing the porridge cakes, that way they would not have to stay late, after dinner, to cook them. Then their host took them on a tour, showing them the damage done by the two attacks. The Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan, could see that her host was very upset about losing the grain field, having it flattened by both attacking craft, and how this had now caused her to delay her plans to recruit her own herd of Rancor. The guest asked her host to show her where she thought she would have her Rancor herd live. She then asked her if she has begun negotiations with a local herd. The host realised that she had not given as much thought to the details, as she should have. She needed to take advantage of her guest's knowledge while she was here. Just then one of the host's hunters ran up to her Mother. She was both excited, and out of breath. The hunt was successful. The others are returning with all of their kills. There will be a feast tonight, she ran back to warn the kitchen. The host Mother asked her guest if she could take advantage of her knowledge and experience over dinner, to see how she thinks they should reorganise their village, to best accommodate a Rancor herd. She said she could, but said she will be eating outside near her Rancor. The host Mother sent one of her Sisters to inform the kitchen that all of the Sisters will be eating outside with her guests. During dinner, the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan drew a sketch, in the dirt, of what her village looked like before they had Rancor. Then she indicated the changes they made for the Rancor. The Sisters of the Red Hills Clan, had picked up their plates, and were standing around the two Mothers, so that they could hear and see everything, while they ate. It took a while to get used to the sounds of the Rancor crushing a bone in their mouth, while they ate. One Sister was surprised to see that they took the Rancor right inside their village. Enclosing their area with the village wall. She asked if her people feel safe, living like this. The Clan Mother told her that having a stream in the village, acting as a natural barrier helped. The villagers were nervous at first, because they knew that humans are still on the Rancor's menu, but then, so are Rancor. This surprised the Sisters that Rancor will eat Rancor. She explained that Rancor will not eat one of their own herd, and now the humans in their village are now considered part of their herd. But if they find a lone Rancor, and the herd is hungry, they will kill it to feed the herd. Also if you came to our village, and we showed that you were not welcome, then they would not hesitate to make a snack out of you. In the same regard, if you had Rancor in your village right now. They would not hesitate to attack us for being too close. Respect and distance go hand in hand. Something we are all going to have to keep in mind, for when all the clans have Rancor. The guest Clan Mother drew a sketch of how the Red Hills Clan village looks right now. Then she showed them the changes she thinks they need to make to take advantage of their terrain, and to accommodate their Rancor. They were going to need a lot of logs to surround all that with a palisade. One of the Sisters noticed something in her sketch and asked her what it was. She told them they have a stream that acts as a natural barrier. The Rancor know that that area contains the dens for the human members of their herd, so to show respect they do not cross it unless invited to do so. Or if the village was being attacked there, they would cross it to defend the village. For us humans, crossing the stream reminded us that we were entering an area where there are Rancor, and we need to give them the respect they deserve. Since you do not have a natural one you need to build a physical one. It only needs to come up as high as the average adult human's waist. But it will be enough of a barrier to remind everyone of where they are. The Sisters asked the Clan Mother, how long it took her villagers, to get used to living with Rancor? She told them that it took less time then she expected. After one month she heard one villager say to another, "that they could not imagine how we lived without them." This produced favourable murmurs with the Sisters. When no one had any more questions, the guest Clan Mother strongly hinted that she had business to discuss with their Mother. The Sisters knew that they needed to talk about the logs to build the palisade, since they would need to get them from the Singing Mountain Clan's territory. After they left the guest Mother asked her host, what was stopping them from recruiting a Rancor herd right now? She said that she already knew about the grain. But rebuilding their palisade to the size she suggested, and the village people not feeling vulnerable especially after two attacks is hard. The guest Mother told her that right now the Singing Mountain Clan has an excess amount of grain, and do not have the storage capacity to handle it. It is in her clan's best interest, if she lends them some grain right now, so that they can return it when the Singing Mountain Clan has finished building new grain storage facilities. "You would give us grain." "No. We will lend you grain, now. So that you can pay it back later." The host could not believe her ears, she was being offered grain. "What about the wall?" The guest Mother pointed out that a herd of Rancor could dig the trench for placing the logs for the palisade in one day. If they pile up the dirt on the village side of the trench. They will have an effective barrier in place, protecting the village until they bring back the logs they need to build their palisade. The host Mother liked what she was hearing. What about the logs themselves. "The ones we need are in your territory, and it would take forever to haul them here." The guest Mother told her that their forest is large, and the number of logs that they need would not change its size. If they were to cut down what they need themselves, and have the Rancor drag them back. She estimates that the whole project from start to finish should take less than half a month. The host Mother was originally thinking half a year. But she was not expecting the Rancor to help. She was thinking it all had to be done before they recruited Rancor. Her guest said that there was one concern. The town will also be cutting down logs. They probably need three to four times as much as the Red Hills Clan needs. She does not want the Red Hills Clan Herd of Rancor, fighting with the town's herd of Rancor. This caught the host completely off guard. So the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan told her host about the pirates ransacking the town and raping the women, and their plead for protection. She could not send them Sisters without violating the neutrality agreement. It was her Herd Mother that suggested that the town have their own herd to protect them. Now the Clan Mother of the Red Hills Clan, considered the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan to be one of the most intelligent of all the Mothers. If she was taking advice from a Rancor Herd Mother, than these creatures are more intelligent then she imagined. After hearing about the herd she recruited, and the projects she assigned them, she was not very pleased that she would be required to reimburse them for building her a compound. Even though her guest was right. It did have to be done. The next morning right after breakfast. The Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan, dispatched two of her Sisters to return to their village, to arrange a shipment of grain to the Rolling Hills Clan, and she expected them to return with it. She then asked her host Mother, to take her to the herd she was hoping to recruit. The host took her to where she could see the herd from a distance. The herd was a good size. They would be a good fit for the Red Hills Clan. Then she did something that upset her host. She walked up to a sentry and asked permission to speak to their Herd Mother. Her host could not let her endanger herself, and quickly caught up to her. While she was still approaching. The sentry mentioned to her guest that she smells like she belongs to another herd. She told the sentry she did, which is why she asked permission. The sentry relayed her request, and kept an eye on her as she sat down and waited. He did not like that another human approached. At least it was civil enough to sit beside the first one. When permission came, the first human asked the sentry if it was alright if her friend comes along. The sentry only grunted. They were unharmed as they walked through the herd. The host Mother noticed that a lot of the Rancor sniffed the air as her guest walked by. When they reached the Herd Mother, she asked her what she wanted? She told her that recently a Rancor herd has agreed to join with her village. She so much enjoys talking with the Herd Mother, that she wanted her herdless friend to experience it for herself. She then excused herself, saying that she needs to reunite with members from her herd, then left. That left the Clan Mother from the Red Hills Clan all alone in the middle of a wild Rancor herd. The Herd Mother asked her if she really has Rancor's from her herd nearby. The Clan Mother said she did, at present they are guests of her village. They intend no harm for her herd. They will have a hunter from her village accompany them whenever they go hunting. She asked if a human and Rancor hunt together. She said they did, and her own hunters were quite impressed by how successful they are. They talked for most of that day. When the Clan Mother from the Red Hills Clan, returned to her village, she confronted her guest. "You did that on purpose." Her guest smiled and said she did. The host grabbed her, and hugged her, and thanked her. She had a wonderful time. For the next few mornings, when she saw that not all the Mothers had gathered, she would go and spend the day with her new friend. The sentries were now used to her, so when she asked to speak to the Herd Mother, they let her go without seeking permission. When she returned to the village, she would tell her Sisters over dinner some of the things they discussed. Later when she looked back. She realised the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan knew they needed to do things this way, so it was easier for both groups to unite, because they were ready."

"The Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan was surprised by how many Sisters from all of the clans, took advantage of the neutrality of the Rolling Red Hills. They did not come to hunt, but to socialise, and to get the local Sisters to show off their territory. Everyone learnt how the Rolling Red Hills received their name. It was not from the rich red topsoil, but after a good rain. Small red flowers would suddenly appear on all the hilltops. That is why they are called the Red Hills."


	5. Chapter 5

©2016

"When the meeting finally started, the Clan Mother of the Red Hill Clan, led the other Mothers and their selected Sisters through a detailed description of both battles. She then took them on a tour of both ships. Because the smell of humans was still strong on the ships, the larger animals that would make them their den, were not there yet. The smaller animals that are always looking for a new place to hide, scurried out of their way, during the tour. The Mothers asked the two Sisters that were injured by their swords in the second battle, to testify before the council. They wanted to know the history of their swords. They wanted to know who made them. What technique was used, and what metals were used in its construction. No one wanted a sword that would explode into hundreds of sharp metal fragments. Any similar swords would need to be reworked to protect the Sister who had it. The sword that went molten then splattered was a different story. When they questioned that Sister, she told them that her sword was made by the force using blacksmith, who along with his sister, taught all the clans to fight. The Mother whose clan they were from, told the council, that her blacksmiths still use his techniques today. Unfortunately he had the reputation of trying different metal combinations, in each sword he made. With the sword destroyed, they may never know which combination of metals were used in her sword. "Will this help?" She emptied a wooden water pail, full of metal pieces that had been molten, then cooled. You could still see pieces of flesh sticking to the undersides of some of them. Some of the Sisters that were with their Mothers, became queasy, and had to look away, when they realised, that it was her flesh, sticking to the metal pieces on the ground. The Mother told her that there was enough metal for her blacksmiths to determine which metals were used. They could then fashion her a new sword if she wanted. She said that she would rather have a new sword, then a water bucket full of metal. The Mother got up to help her put the metal back into the bucket. She quietly, told the Sister how proud she was to meet her. From the tears in the Mothers eyes, she knew the comment was sincere, and thanked her. The Mother took the full pail from the Sister, and gave it to one of her own Sisters, to take it to her blacksmiths right away."

"The Mothers discussed strategies, on how to best combat these attacks. They also wanted to know why the Red Hills Clan was the only clan that has been attacked. One of the things they were considering, was making heavy dummy swords, to absorb the impact of the blaster bolts, until the Sister is close enough to draw her real sword and dispatch the attackers. Suddenly a Sister from the Singing Mountain Clan, rides right up on her Rancor to where the Mothers were meeting outside. Interrupting the meeting by telling her Mother that the town was attack by pirates again. "Their Rancor were able to drive the pirates off, killing some in the process. But what is really amazing, is that their skin was not injured by anything the pirates shot at them."

Now all the Mothers knew about the first pirate attack on the town, and knew that it was on the agenda for discussion later on. What three of the Mothers did not know, was what steps the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan had already taken, to help protect the town. They looked at her, and demanded to know what she had done to the town. They were afraid that she had made it part of her clan. She told them that she had already shared what she had done, with the Clan Mother of the Red Hills Clan, and was scheduled to make her presentation later, when they discussed the pirate attack on the town. She told them this to tease them, and because she sensed that they were suspicious of her. Because the Clan Mother of the Red Hills Clan was hosting this meeting, she was the one in charge of the agenda. So the three Mothers turned to her, to ask her permission, for the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan to make her presentation now. She wanted to laugh because of the way, the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan had managed to tweak the noses of the three Mothers. But she supressed that desire, and smiled, and gave her permission. The Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan, started by telling them, how she heard about the first pirate attach on the town. "She sent one of her Sisters to warn a clanless settlement in her territory, about the danger. Then she talked with her Herd Mother about the town's situation. Mentioning that she could not send them some Sisters to protect them, without violating the neutrality agreement made with all the clans." The three Mothers were embarrassed that they had thought that she would. "She was the one who suggested bring together some lone Rancor, to form a small herd. Then they could be the town's garrison. When I pointed out that there were no force users in the town to talk to the Rancor. She told me that they did not need them. She told me that there were people in my own clan that were not force users, but could still communicate with them. The other humans in the clan call them beastmasters. She told how she took one beastmaster and tested him, by having him communicate with the first lone Rancor they found. We had surrounded the Rancor, and it was very upset. It calmed down when the beastmaster approached it, and sat down, as I had instructed the beastmaster to make it do. The other lone Rancor we encountered all reacted the same way to the beastmaster. When I pointed out to the town's people, that this was the only way their town could be protected in the future. They reluctantly agreed to cooperate. The Rancor I gathered agreed to become one herd, and they selected the person in town that could talk to them. She is the wife of the man killed by the pirates in the first raid. Before leaving, I instructed the town that they need to build enclosures for every clan. Because none of us will be able to enter their town with our Rancor, without there being a conflict. We would also need to keep our own Rancor separate, for the same reason, when we gather for our Council of Mothers. I told them that each clan should reimburse them, for their enclosure, because it would be clan property." The Mothers did not like that they had just acquired another debt, but could not argue with the logic. One of them asked the Clan Mother of the Red Hills Clan, if they could move this meeting to the town, because the results of this pirate raid could affect the strategy they adopt to counter the raids. All the other Mothers agreed. So the Council of Mothers was moved to the Town."

"The Clan Mother of the Red Hills Clan, felt that the information they would uncover at the town, was worth her not being there, if her village was attacked while she was gone. The only Sister she took with her, was the one who was burnt by her molten sword, since she was still recovering, and her Mother did not want her in another battle, until she was fully recovered. Also one of the Sisters that was accompanying the Clan Mother from the Misty Falls Clan, is the healer who helped her. She had already indicated that she was willing to keep ministering to her, if she accompanied them. When they arrived at the town, they found the people busy with their construction projects, and in very good spirits. Everyone in town wanted to personally thank the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan for what she did to help protect their town. She kept telling them that it was a Rancor that came up with the idea, because she could see that the other Mothers were a little jealous of all the attention she was receiving. They first went to talk with the Rancor. They questioned them about how they were recruited. Than they described the battle. None of the Mothers asked them what happened to the dead pirates, and the Rancor were glad they didn't. The Rancor were proud of their beastmaster, and of how well she was looking after them. So when the Mothers asked her to demonstrate her control over them, they were very careful to follow her instructions, so that she would not feel humiliated in front of these powerful women. They then interviewed everyone in town individually, asking them about the first pirate raid, and the second pirate raid. That is when they found out, that one of the women that had been raped in the first raid, asked them why they did not go to the villages north of their town, were all the beautiful young ladies were. She wanted the pirates to attach one of their villages, so that the Sisters would kill them. She was happy to hear that all the pirates were dead. She did not know about the second ship. She was clearly upset that two Sisters died defending their village."

"When she left the council, the Sister with the burns caught up to her. The woman could tell that she was recently disfigured, she asked if this was because of the attacks. The Sister confirmed that it was, and the woman started crying. The Sister asked her to stop, in case she take away from the legacy of what happened. She told her that not one of her Sisters were sorry that she used them as instruments of vengeance. She described how her best friend died in the second attack, and how she still managed to kill one of the attackers before she died. "Not only that, but because she drew all the attackers fire, many of her other Sisters were able to reach the attackers unharmed, and quickly dispatched them. My friend is now a hero to all her Sisters, something that she would have been proud of. Don't cry, or be sorry, that you helped make a hero. But you can cry because of our pain and our loss." The woman thanked her for her words, she did feel better. She asked permission to give her a kiss on her cheek, because she did not want to hurt her, by giving her a hug. The Sister pointed to where she could kiss her. She felt the woman's tears on her face as she did. The woman told her that now she had a hero to look up to. That evening the Sister told her Mother what happened between the woman and herself. The Mother was happy she told her, she knew that all the Sisters will feel better because of it. All the Mothers now knew that having Rancor, was key to the strategy of beating the raiders. The Sisters can use the Rancor as a shield, as they approach the attackers. The raiders always attacked at night, because they thought they had a technological advantage. They can then blind them with a ball of force fire. Then it was relatively easy to dispatch them. If they can attack them while they are still getting off the ship. Than the village will never be in danger. It did not matter if the ship got away. In fact it might be better for them, because they could warn other ships away.

The strategy that all the clans adopted, once they all had Rancor. Was to have three Sisters with their Rancor resting by their main gate. They could have sentries on their walls that were not force users. They would wake the three teams when they detected a ship in their area. The three teams would then try to reach the ship just after it landed. To engage anyone trying to get off the ship. In the meantime the sentries would have awaken the rest of the Sisters and their Rancor, in case the first teams needed assistance (they never did)."

"The Clan Mother of the Red Hills Clan wasted no time in reaching a cooperation agreement with the Herd Mother of the Rancor herd near her village, once she returned from the Council of Mothers. When she explained that she had been given permission to enter another clan's territory to harvest the trees they would need for the logs for the palisade. The Herd Mother guessed right away that it was the human from the Rancor herd, the one who introduced them, as the one who gave them permission. She told the Clan Mother that this woman is good to have as their ally. The Clan Mother warned her that she had also given permission to another group to harvest trees. They were not a clan, and it would be very bad to have a conflict with them. The Herd Mother had her explain, what was so special about this group. After the explanation, the Herd Mother knew that she would have to go with them the first time they went to harvest trees. On the way there, the Herd Mother gave permission to the hunters to kill any game they came upon during the trip. When they saw the town's people and their small herd of Rancor, she asked her herd to keep back while she went to talk to the small herd. Her herd did not like that their Herd Mother was going alone to talk with the strange herd. They thought they should show a show of strength, and send a large group to intimidate them. The town's herd was already intimidated by the presents of such a large herd, and could not understand why the Herd Mother from this herd was approaching them by herself. Their beastmaster was giving them signs that everything was all right, and to keep in peace. They were surprised that the Herd Mother would ask permission to speak to them, rather than just saying what she wanted to say. They readily gave her permission. So when she sat down they came closer to her and sat down as well. The Herd Mother told them that the people of her herd feel a special obligation to protect the small herd's people, and therefore they feel that the small herd must be protected as well. To honour her people, she feels that her entire herd is obligated to protect them, while they are together. She asks that they refrain from attacking any of her people, or of her herd, because they will not be allowed to retaliate. This was not what the small herd was expecting. They promised the Herd Mother that they had no intention of attacking her people or her herd. They were grateful that she felt obligated to extend the protection of her herd to them. So they would show her honour, by maintaining peace while they were together, and would willingly help defend her herd if the need arose. The Herd Mother than called over one of her hunters, and to bring his kill. The Herd Mother than asked the hunter to give his kill to the small herd as acknowledgement of their agreement, both herds were surprised by this. Usually the smaller herd paid tribute to the larger herd, if they wanted to keep peace, while passing through a larger herd's territory, while looking for new hunting grounds. She than called each member of her herd to come and get the scent of the small herd, so they would know not to hurt them, but to protect them while they were together. The Clan Mother came over and sat beside the Herd Mother, because she wanted to understand what was going on. She did not know that her peaceful presence, reinforced what the Herd Mother was instructing her herd. Back at the village the Herd Mother explained her action to the herd, so they would understand. There was no incidents the entire time the two groups were together harvesting trees. The small herd liked that though they were small, they were special, and it helped to strengthen the bond they had established with their people. The Clan Mother was pleased, that just as the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan predicted, their new village palisade was completed in under half a month. All the Sisters and their Rancor mounts were sent out hunting as soon as the palisade was completed, so that they could have a great feast in celebration."

"Now to make life more interesting, a ship lands next to town in the middle of the day. Its ramp lowers, then a man gets tossed down the ramp, and off the ship. The ramp is raised, and the ship takes off, leaving the man stranded on the planet. After he stands and brushes himself off. The people from the town come out to meet him. They ask him if he is alright, and why they threw him off their ship. They still did not know if he was a pirate or not. He says that he will tell them all they want to know. But first he would like them to point him in the direction, to where he could get a nice stiff drink. They look at each other because they are not sure what he wants. Someone tells him that the only drinks they can offer him, are water and tea. There are no fruits that are ripe right now, so they cannot offer him that, if that is what he was looking for. He asks them if they have any drinks with alcohol in it. They ask him what alcohol is. He tilts his head back, and yells, "Nooooooooo!" The town's people don't know what to make of his behaviour. Suddenly the beastmaster runs up with her herd of Rancor. She said that it sounded like they were torturing this man. The man does not know what to think of these Rancor. The others are not bothered by their presence, but he wants to keep as many people between him and the beasts as he can. He tells her that it is worse than torture. They have dropped him off on an uncivilized planet. The town's people have heard enough. They all start going back to what they were doing before the ship landed. The beastmaster said, "Your good at making new friends, aren't you!""

Krillgan squeezed his father's shoulder. "Why did she say that when he had not made any friends yet?"

"She was rebuking him for chasing away the people he should have been making friends with."

Krillgan thought about that for a moment. "Do adults often say the opposite of what they really should be saying?"

"Yes, and when you are older you will be saying it to. It is not just the words, but the tone in which you say it, also has a meaning."

Krillgan thought about it for a moment, than he looked at the Captain, like he was ready to hear more.

"The man did not want to stay and talk with this woman. Because she was the only one between him and the beasts, and they followed her here. So she must be able to somehow control them. He called out, "Who is in charge here?" The people turned back, and said they all were. He asked if there was someone in charge of the planet. They told him "No!" "Then how do you get anything done here?" One of the people answered, "By working, instead of standing around talking to strangers with half a brain." Most of the people had to put their hand over their mouth, to keep from laughing. "He asked them if they had an Inn here, and what sort of currency do they use?" They told him that they had no idea what he was talking about. He asked them where people stay when they visit this place, and where can you get a meal? They tell him, that if a visitor comes with their own Rancor, they will camp outside of the town. If a visitor is good friends with someone in town, they usually will stay with them. Otherwise they will let them stay in one of the empty houses. As far as getting a meal, they can go to the kitchen with everyone else. "So you don't pay for any of this." We don't know what you mean by pay? But if you want to live here, than you work. "Do I have to wait for everyone else to want to eat, because I'm kind of hungry now?" One of the women told him to follow her to the kitchen, she will give him something to snack on, to hold him over, until dinner time. In the kitchen, she cut off a piece of porridge cake, some cheese, and gave him a cup of water. He thought she was going to cook him something. Then she left. He quickly followed her, because he did not want to be left alone. He followed her to where the people were, and watched them putting up a palisade around what looked like another section of the town. It was fascinating to watch the people and the beasts working together. The beasts were better trained than he thought. He watched the woman closely who seemed to be the one controlling them. By the time he had finished his snack, and washed it down. He was confident he knew what she was doing. He walked over to one of the beasts and did what he thought was an imitation of what she was doing. The beast looked over at the lady. The lady made a gesture. The beast hit him with the back of his hand, bowling him over. All the people laughed, and he was sure the beasts were laughing too. He walked up to the lady, and demanded to know, "Why she made the beast do what it did?" "She told him that first it is not a beast, it is a Rancor. Second I did not tell him to do that. He told me that you were as annoying as a baby Rancor. So I told him to treat you like one. I had no idea they treated their young that way." The town's people laughed again, when they found out why the Rancor did what he did. She suggested, that for now he just sit and watch, and try to keep out of everyone's way. Later they will figure out what to do with him. His ego was bruised by his treatment so far on this planet, even more so, because a woman was telling him what he should do."

Krillgan squeezed his father's shoulder again. "What is ego?" Chitrah thought for a moment. "The ego deals with how we think of ourselves, and how we think people think of us. If we think we are important, and find out that other people do not. Then that knowledge is believed to bruise our ego, because we are now forced to re-evaluate ourselves. It appears that this man came from a society were men are dominant, so for a woman to tell him what to do, he felt humiliated."

"Do you feel humiliated when mother tells you to do something?"

"No. Your mother is a very intelligent woman. Someone who deserves our respect. So when she tells me to do something, I know it needs to be done."

Andriel told Chitrah, that that was a very good answer. Then she leaned over and kissed him on the cheek.

Chitrah told Krillgan, "Sometimes you get benefits." So Andriel leaned over and kissed him again. Krillgan smiled, then looked at the Captain.

"As dinner approached, he did not notice that some of the people, had left the others, and went into town, because he had stopped paying attention to what they were doing. When everyone else stopped working, he noticed. He followed them to the kitchen. He lined up with the others and was rewarded with a nice hot plate of food. He did not know what it was, but it smelt good. He grabbed whatever anyone else grabbed, and followed them to a table. When everyone else started eating, he did what they did. Again someone asked him why he was thrown off of the ship. He told them that he had a disagreement with the man in charge of his planet. So the man had the ship bring him here. Someone asked what the disagreement was about? He told them that he had let the man know that he thought he could run the planet better than him. What he did not say, but they found out later, was that he tried to overthrow the government. Now a lot of pirates are also mercenaries. They are not the type that you can find on a planet's surface. They are the type you can hire along with their ships, to help defend a planet, from pirates, and other people who might try to invade the planet. For the pirates this can also be an opportunity to upgrade their Starfighters. Most Starfighter manufacturers will not sell directly to a pirate. But they will sell their product to someone who is in control of a planet, even though it would not be their current line, but Starfighters that are a couple of generations old. For pirates, these are usually a couple generations newer than what they currently have. So the pirates will buy the starfighters from the person in charge of the planet, and sell their old ones to them as scrap. Now you have to be very careful when hiring pirates, because, once their contract is over, and you don't rehire them. It does not matter if you had a good relationship with them or not. If you have not built up your space fleet while they worked for you. They will land and attack your settlements. You have to remember, that while they worked for you. They found out where all the wealth on the planet is, so they know where to attack. It was probably some of the pirate/mercenaries that told the ruler of the planet, that Dathomir was a good place to put people that he did not want on his planet anymore. Now the man did not like, that after dinner, they made him help clean up, and wash dishes. They did show him a house he could sleep in, and some nice people gave him some blankets and a pillow. When he entered the house, it was completely empty. There was not one piece of furniture. He went back to the kitchen, and asked them where he could sleep? They told him he had a house, he could sleep wherever he wants. "But there is no furniture." "Then make some. You are not a child. We should not have to tell you these things." He was not happy when he went back to his empty house, he was used to others doing things for him. It wasn't long before the clans all heard about the offworlder, and that the town did not think he was much of a man. Some even thought that he may have had his private parts cut off."

Chitrah did not wait for Krillgan to squeeze his shoulder. He told him that some mean men, if you are their prisoner, they will cut off the horn of your manhood, or the sac underneath it, or both. "Why would they do that?"

"What I will tell you for now, is that they do it because they can. They do it to humiliate the person they do it to."

"Then how do they go pee?"

"The same way a woman does."

Now Krillgan knew for sure, that there was no such thing as a horn of womanhood. He looked sideways at his mother, because he did not want her knowing he was looking at her. He wondered how she went pee. His faced darkened because he was too embarrassed to ask her. Instead he looked down at his hands in his lap, and told the Captain he was ready to hear more of the story. The Captain felt sorry for him. He was learning a lot about life these past two days. He was surprised his head had not exploded.

"When the Clan Mother of the Red Hills Clan, heard about the offworlder, she decide to take the objects they had taken off of the bodies of their attackers, and show them to him. Maybe he could tell them what they were, and if they have any practical value. He was surprised to see the objects, and asked them where they got them. They told him that their village had been attacked twice, and these were some of the objects they had collected off of the bodies of their attackers. He asked them what they did with their weapons. They told him that they put their weapons aboard their ship, because they were dangerous, and she did not want any of her people getting hurt. He asked her, if he tells her what the objects are, will she take him to see the ship? Now the two Sisters that came with their Mother, did not like this man at all. He showed no respect to their Clan Mother. Now he did not know she was the Clan Mother. He still believed that there must be a man, or a group of men in charge. He wondered if they were testing him, and sent this woman in their place. She told him that if he did tell her about each object, she would make sure he was taken to the ships. He told them that the small tubes with dried fungus inside are called Death Sticks. The women were surprised, because they had started calling the weapons the attackers used death sticks. He explained that it was an addictive mild hallucinogen. Their attackers smoked them to help them forget how bad their life was. He did not tell them that he really wanted them, even though he had never smoked one before. The Clan Mother told her Sisters that she was going to send half of what they had to the healers in the Misty Falls Clan, maybe there is a medicinal use for them. She showed him the metal discs, and told them that they thought they were the images of the gods they worshiped. The offworlder laughed, he said the men whose image is on these coins, wished they were gods. He told them that the coins could be exchanged for goods on the planets the men had been to. None where from his planet, so they have no value to him. The Clan Mother asked him to explain. At first he wanted to reach for a death stick, then changed his mind and picked up a ring. "Let's say you were a jeweller that specialised in making rings. I want to buy a ring from you, and you tell me how many coins you are willing to accept in exchange for that ring. I give you the coins, and you give me the ring. It is almost dinner time, so you go to the baker, and exchange some coins for a loaf of bread. Then you go to a farmer who is selling cheese. You use some of the coin to buy some cheese. Then you go to a vender to buy something to drink that will go nice with your bread and cheese. With that ring, you where able to buy your dinner, and probably have some coins left over to buy breakfast." "Don't people share their food with you, on this planet that you are from?" "No. If you do not have coins, they would rather let you starve to death." "So you would rather be on a planet, where the only thing people care about are metal discs, than on this planet, where people are willing to share their food with you, and provide a roof over your head, as long as you are willing to work to support your community." The man was clearly embarrassed. No wonder the town's people are reluctant to help make the furniture he needs. His ideas of value, and importance are all mixed up. The man did point out that some of the coins had the same metals in them as some of the rings they have. If they knew someone who makes jewellery, he could melt the coins down and make some nice rings, or maybe something else. The ladies realised that the jeweller must be a special type of blacksmith. One whose speciality is to work with soft metals, to make body ornaments. She put her box away. Right now there was no one on Dathomir like that. She asked him if he was ready to go, because they were ready to take him to the ships. When they went outside the town, the three ladies got on their Rancor. The man looked around and saw that there was no Rancor for him to ride. He asked if they could wait a moment, while he gets one of the town's Rancor to ride. The Clan Mother asked him if he could talk to the Rancor. He said he tried once but it did not go that well. The woman who handles them said that the Rancor complained to her that I was just like an irritating infant. So she told it to treat me like one. All three women burst out laughing. They knew it must have been a male Rancor."

"They have seen firsthand what a male Rancor does when a young infant irritates it. Whamp, it gets the back of the hand, making it roll away. It does not appear to be injured, because as soon as it stops rolling, it gets up and starts irritating another adult. What is funny, is to watch the herd's reaction to what happens next. The mother of the infant is clearly upset, and goes up to the offending male, and starts yelling at him. The rest of the herd is clearly entertained by this. You can even see some of them quietly laughing, until the mother of the infant looks there way, and then they try to hide that they were laughing. When one of the Sisters noticed the male that was being yelled at, had tears in his eyes. She asked her Rancor about that, when he approached her to go hunting, because the mother was looking at him. He told her that the Rancor was not sorry for what he had done. He had tears in his eyes because he was trying not to laugh. If he started laughing the mother would start beating him. They wondered how far the offworlder flew when he was hit by the Rancor's backhand. He wasn't hit very hard because he had no broken bones."

"The Clan Mother told him that if he cannot talk to a Rancor, then they will not let him ride them. The man was confused, because he did not see any of the three women make any hand gestures, they just climbed aboard. "So what am I supposed to do?" The Clan Mother said, "Run." Her Rancor told her that when infants get older, they make them run all the time, that way they are too tired to be irritating. He had no choice but to try and keep up with the three women on their Rancor. When they saw him getting tired they would stop to let him catch his breath. They would share some of their water with him, by pouring some it, into his hands, to let him drink. There was no way they were going to let him drink right out of one of their skins. He would probably put his lips on it, instead of pouring it into his mouth. They knew his horn of manhood was not cut away like some of the villagers thought, because when he had to go pee, he would stay standing, and turn his back to the women. Unfortunately, he would forget to check which way the wind was blowing, and get a lot of it on his pants. Even their young village boys knew to check which way the wind is blowing before they pee. When he took a break as the evening approached. One of the women disappeared, along with the Rancor she was riding. The other women were not concerned, so when they thought he had rested enough, they pushed on. They kept him going, well after sunset. They only stopped because he said he could not see. There were two moons shining that evening, more than enough light to see where they are going. They figured the real reason was because he was too soft, and probably could not run anymore. So they decided to stop there for the night. They started a small fire going by burning the animal droppings they found in the area. The other woman showed up with two dead young Verne bulls."

"The Verne are a mammalian herd animal found on the grasslands of Dathomir. The bulls have six horns that protrude from the back of their head, and the leather made from their hides, was used in making a lot of their clothing. These were young bulls, so their horns were not very long. It also meant that the meat should be nice to eat. Not sinewy, like an old bull. Two of the women took out their knives and soon had both Verne cut clean in half. A half was given to each of the Rancor, for their dinner. The last half was divided into four relatively equal portions. The Clan Mother was given the piece that the Sisters knew had the tenderest meat. They kept two portions for themselves, and gave the last portion to the man. They rightly assumed that he would not know one cut of meat from another. They gave it to him raw, and told him not to eat it all tonight, but to save a portion for breakfast. Mother gave them a dirty look for that. Did they want to get the man killed? By holding onto a raw piece of meat all night."

"The man had never cooked anything before. When he was out in the field with his men, they always cooked the game meat for him. All he had to do was eat it. He held it too close to the fire. Burning the outside while the inside was still raw. He singed his fingers in the process, not knowing how to hold the meat, and settled on eating it the way it was. He was starving, after running all day, and ate all of it. He did not care that he had nothing left over for breakfast. He did follow their example. When he cleaned the meat off of a bone, he threw it in the fire. After he finished eating, they made him go down wind from them. Because he stank. He smelt from sweating all day as he ran, and from all the pee he managed to get on his pants. Even the Rancor did not want to be down wind from him. He did not care. He was too tired. Now that his tummy was full, he just wanted to sleep. The three women did not sleep very well that night, because the man snored. One of the Rancor complained that he snored louder than the Herd Mother. The other two laughed, but they were able to fall asleep. At sunrise, they woke him up, and gave him a piece of porridge cake for breakfast. After he ate that, they poured some water in his hands to wash it down. He complained that he was stiff all over. They told him to stretch it out. He would feel better once he started running. For some reason his feet felt heavier than they did the day before. It was not until after his first rest, that he fell into a running grove. In the middle of the afternoon, when he stopped to rest. The Clan Mother, with the three Rancor kept going. She decided that she did not want to spend another night with him, and left for her village, leaving the two Sisters to babysit him. The Sisters knew that she had more important things to do, than babysit this man. They were sorry that they had to give up their Rancor as well. They were much better company than he was. The man did not know what one of the women killed for their dinner, nor did he care. He was happy they cooked the creature before they divided it up. He greedily devour everything they gave him. Then went right to sleep. The two Sisters had to move to stay upwind of him. They did not tell him that the lizard they ate for breakfast, they killed while it was sneaking up on his body while he slept. They did not think it would have hurt him unless he accidentally rolled over on it while he slept. They think it was attracted to his body heat. He did not know he was eating a lizard, he just knew it was food."

"They reached the two ships by mid-morning. As soon as they entered the canyon, he asked about the bad smell. The two Sisters were honestly surprised he could smell it, considering how bad he smelt. They told him that he was smelling the creatures that now live on the ships. They were easier to smell since there were so many of them living so close together. He asked, if they were dangerous? They told him that they were predators, so given a chance they would kill him, and eat the flesh off of his bones. The women did not seem to be afraid, so they approached the ships, until he actually caught sight of one. He wasn't sure what it was, but it looked mean, and ugly. He refused to come any closer to the ships. His hopes of going aboard, and retrieving all the blaster rifles was dashed. He had two plans for the blaster rifles. One, he was hoping to train the town's people into becoming a fighting militia, and taking over Dathomir. Second, they were the only commodity that he had found on this planet that he could think of to trade with a merchant ship or smuggler, to get him off this planet. Even if the power cells were dead, the rifles still had value, because all you had to do was replace the power cell, which was easy to come by on most planets. What he could not understand, is why the ships' crews would land their craft so close together. They were not allowed this close together on the busiest spaceport he had been to. The other thing he could not understand, is why they landed so far from the village they attacked. He has yet to see it. He knew it was on top of a hill, so should be relatively easy to spot. He also knew that most pirates and slavers are lazy. They would land as close as possible to their target, so they would not have to walk too far, once they claimed their prize. He also could not understand how these primitive people could beat them. As soon as a Rancor showed up, he would think that most pirate crews would make a hasty retreat to their ship and get off the planet. Even if they had smoked a few death sticks before battle, it should not impeded their judgement for them to get slaughtered, and their ships captured. When he knew that he would find no answers here, only more questions, he asked to be taken back to town. They made him run to keep up with them. It bothered him that they never seemed tired. One could easily break off, he assumed to see if they could find some game, then join back up with them, as if they never left. Two things were different on the return trip. He learnt how to check the wind before he would pee. He found he wasn't as stiff in the mornings as he was before, and got into a running grove much sooner."

"It was still early in the morning, when they sighted the town's wall. The Sisters asked if he needed them to run with him all the way to the town, or could he make it on his own. There were no predators in the area, and they wanted to run back to their village, and sleep in their own beds tonight. He told them he was fine. He did not tell them that he thought they had been out in the sun too long if they thought they could run all the way back to their village in one day. As he approached the town, he noticed that everyone was out working on the enclosures. As he approached them he told them that the two young ladies that escorted him back to town, said they could run back to their village in one day. The one lady said why not, it's not like they are like you or me. This statement confused the offworlder. How where they different? They seemed normal to him. When he came closer, the lady wrinkled her nose and waved her hand in front of her face. "You need to wash your clothes right now, you might want to wash yourself while you're at it. She shooed him away from them, and told him to go to his house. A short time later she knocked on his door, handed him an empty wash basin, a scrub board, and an empty pail used for water, and some soap. She told him that he could borrow the wash basin and scrub board for the day. He can keep the other items. He asked how to use it. She told him he would figure it out. He asked her what he could wear while he was washing his clothes. She told him that it was fortunate for him that no one else lives with him, so he doesn't have to worry about it, and left. He put the wash basin right in the middle of the main room on the floor. He went to the town's well, and retrieved two pails of water for the wash basin, and one pail of water in case he needed it. He had to kneel down at the basin to use it. He decided to take off his shirt and start with that. He put the shirt in the washbasin, and wondered what he was supposed to do next, because now he had a wet shirt, but not a clean shirt. He needed to get soap on it. He put the scrub board in the basin and put a piece of his shirt on top of it. He grabbed the soap and started rubbing it on the shirt. He quickly realized that if he wasn't careful he could use up all of the soap on just his shirt, and have nothing left for the rest of his clothes, or to wash himself. He wondered if he could transfer the soap, from the one piece with all the soap on it to another piece of the shirt. So he put another part of his shirt on the scrubbing board. Then rubbed the soapy part on top of it. It wasn't long before they were both soapy. So he kept transferring the soap to the rest of the shirt this way. Then he tried rinsing the shirt in the wash basin. He could tell from the water that he had been able to get some of the grime out of his shirt. So he quickly squeezed his shirt and held it up, wondering where he could hang it. As he held it up, water started dripping from it. He did not do a very good job squeezing it out. So he tried again. He got more water out, then held it up again. It wasn't long before more water started drip out of the shirt. He because frustrated with himself. And decided he needed to find a place to hang it. The only place he could think of hanging his clothes was on the window seal of a window. He did not want to do that, because he was afraid that as his clothes dried, the wind would catch them and blow them all over town, and he would have to run naked through the town, to retrieve his clothes. Something he did not want to do. So he went upstairs to the room he used as his bedroom, and spread it on the floor. He hoped it would dry that way. Then he went back down to the main floor, and started washing the rest of his clothes. Piece by piece. Whenever he finished washing a piece of clothing he found a dry section of floor to lay it on. Then he would go move everything else he had washed to another section of dry floor, flipping it on its other side. It was midday by the time he finished washing his clothes. He used the dirty water in the washbasin, and the soap to wash himself. Then he stood over the washbasin, and grabbed the pail of water, pouring it over himself to rinse himself off. Most of the water ended up on the floor. He took the washbasin, and dumped the water out through a window that opened between houses. He then went back to the main room, and started spreading the puddles of water around with his feet. Hoping that the water would dry faster. Then he went around the house, flipping his clothes over again. It was dinner time before his clothes were damp enough to put on. He went to the kitchen, to grab a bite to eat. He was starving. When the woman who lent him the washbasin and scrub board saw him, she started to laugh. She told him that his clothes looked dirtier than they did this morning. Then she sniffed him. "At least you do not smell as bad. You really don't know how to wash clothes do you. How did they wash them on the planet you are from?" He told her that humans don't wash their clothes on the planet he is from. They give them to laundry droids to clean. She asked him, what are droids? He told her that they were special mobile machines that were designed to help humans. She did not know what mobile machines were, but she liked the part about helping humans. She told him that next time she washes some clothes, she will show him how she does it. A few days later, after breakfast, she tells him to follow her. She has the washbasin on a table outside her house, with the scrub board in it. She started washing the first piece of clothing the same way he did, only she used a lot less soap, and scrubbed it a lot longer than he did. After she rinsed in in the washbasin, she scrubbed it all over again. After rinsing it the second time, she folded the clothing over a few times, then really started twisting it. He did not think you could twist the clothes so hard without damaging it. She got a surprising amount of water out of it. Then she hung it up on a thin piece of rope running between the houses. She told him that if it was windy, you could use a peg to keep it in place. The peg looked like a piece of a branch, with a slot cut into it lengthwise, about half of the length of the peg. He had never noticed the rope before. He thanked her for her instruction, and went back to his house to see if there is any rope running between the houses. She did not tell him that her more intimate garments, she hangs on a line strung inside her house."

"The one good thing that resulted from the offworlder running to the ships and back to town. Every morning at the crack of dawn. He would get up and run around the town a few times. Then he would wash himself and go for breakfast. Unfortunately, he wore his shoes out quickly. When he asked them where he can get his shoes repaired or replaced, they handed him a piece of leather. A stone knife to cut the leather, a metal tipped awl, and a strong dull needle, with what he thought was a couple of strong pieces of thread. He asked them what was he was supposed to do with it? They told him to make something for his feet."

Krillgan squeezed his father's shoulder. Than asked him what an awl was? Chitrah asked him if he remembered seeing on his workbench, a hand tool that looked like it had a squashed wooden ball for a handle. A round thin piece of metal came out of it, which ended at a point. He used it to make holes in leather. Now that his father mentioned it, he remembered seeing it.

"He made something that was a cross between a short boot, and a slipper. It wasn't long before he wore a hole in it, and asked for more leather, and the strong thread. They decided that he needed to learn where the leather came from. Every day, before dinner time, the Rancor went out hunting. They brought whatever they killed, back to town, and let the humans handle it before they ate it. They knew that many of the humans in town helped to make the porridge cakes they ate in the morning. Because they could smell the scent of the different people on it. It was not hard to accept that the people in the town were part of the herd, so they had the right to remove from their kill, whatever helps the herd. They even tried to make sure that there was one for the humans to share. So the town's people started eating more meat with their dinner than they ever did before, since no one in town was a hunter. So the people would remove the hides from the animals to make leather. They would also remove the long tendons that the offworlder thought was strong string. They would also remove any hoofs and horns and antlers, and any animal part that they would use in making leather or other things, like glue. Stuff that the Rancor did not miss eating. So now he was assigned to help dress the Rancor's kills. Then in the morning after breakfast, he was part of the crew that processed the hides. They would do it differently, whether they wanted to keep the fur or hair on it, if it was a mammal, or if they wanted to keep the scales on it, if it was reptile. Then they would if they wanted just the leather (no fur, hair or scales). He was told that as long as he worked the leather crew, he could keep one full leather skin, every half month, for personal use. He knew that this was one of the few exportable items this planet manufactured, so he readily agreed."

"It wasn't long after this, that the Clan Mother, that inherited the Dathomirite short sword, took her turn sleeping at her village's gate with two Sisters, and their Rancor mounts. It was that night that pirates made the mistake of attacking her village. When the sentries woke them, they were up on their mounts and out the gate in seconds. Now the pirates had never encountered Rancor before. They thought that if humans were riding them, they could not be that dangerous. Now the Clan Mother was eager to see how her force activated sword, did against the enemy's bolts of light. She was pleasantly surprised to find that her sword reflected the bolts of light, rather than absorb them, like the other swords did. Now she found it awkward to lean forward on her Rancor to deflect the bolts of light, because she could not easily control where she reflected it. So she stood up on her Rancor to make herself a target. Now the two Sisters with her panicked, when they saw their Mother stand up, exposing herself. They had not been able to see what she was able to do with her sword. So they each sent a ball of force fire at the pirates, from further away than they would have liked. Now their Mother was able to reflect the bolts of light back at the pirates, killing all of them on the boarding ramp, so a signal was never given to raise the ramp and take off. In fact when the force fireballs impacted the pirates, they were already dead. Now the Sisters had seen what their Mother did after she stood up, and now knew why she did what she did. So when they came to the ship, instead of taking out their swords, they felt that they could better back up their Mother with their bows and arrows. So Mother would stand in the middle of the walkway on the ship, drawing the pirate's fire that where still aboard ship. While her Sisters picked them off with their bows and arrows. They made it to the bridge in time to kill the pilot, as he had just started lifting off. The other Sisters from the clan arrived just in time to check out what the three had done. They were all excited to hear about what their Mother's sword had done. Now everyone wanted a Dathomirite sword. When the Sisters first started riding Rancor, they knew that it would be awkward to kill a pirate with a sword, while trying to remain shielded by the Rancor's body. So many of the Sisters in all the tribes attached their swords to the end of fighting sticks. Some of them talked to their blacksmith, to see if he could make a device that would keep a sword securely fastened to the end of the fighting stick, but which could easily be disconnected, for when they needed to board a ship, and did not have room for such a long weapon. Every clan came up with their own design, so you could tell which clan a weapon came from just by looking at this connection. To have a Datomirite sword on the end, would make it a very powerful weapon. With all the Sisters of her clan present, their Mother dispatched runners to all of the clans, to tell them how well the Dathomirite sword did. She sent two Sisters to town to bring back the offworlder, so that he could show them how the pirates' weapons worked. They took all the bodies off the ship, and removed everything from them except the clothing. They moved the ship to where their Mother told them. Then took the bodies and dumped them in the ocean. It was quite a trip to take them to the ocean. They ran flat out to the ocean and back, because they wanted to be back in time to see the offworlder demonstrate the weapons. They could have taken their time. They sat around for a couple of days waiting for him to show up. It was almost nightfall, when he did show up. But they could see him shaking from excitement. He asked if he could go aboard the ship. The Clan Mother said yes. The Sisters had laid out the weapons in a neat orderly fashion, at the top of the ramp. Everyone thought he was going up to look at them. Instead, he just kicked them aside with his foot, so he had room to get past them. It was good thing he did not know how many Sisters he upset with that move. The Clan Mother decided she better follow him, and signalled two of the Sisters to come up as well. He looked in every room, like he was looking for something. What he was doing was taking inventory. He was looking for practical stuff he could use on this planet. Any clean clothes he found, he checked it, to see if it would fit him. Any footwear he found, if it looked close to his size, he would grab them to try on later. The Clan Mother asked him what he was doing. He told her he needed new clothes, and was checking to see what fit him. She told him that he should ask first, before assuming he could take anything. He wasn't impressed. He told her that these are guys' clothes. It would not be appropriate for any of the ladies to wear it. She told him that the ship and everything in it, except for him, was clan property. He did not notice that she had not excluded herself, or the Sisters as being clan property. There are men in her village that these clothes could fit. He asked her if any of the men in her village would want to wear these clothes. She did admit that none of the men she knew would want to wear these clothes. She did not say, because they might accidentally be mistaken as a pirate, and get themselves killed. "So these clothes are no good to anyone else but me." Now he already dressed like a pirate, so having more pirate clothes would make no difference to him. She did not say anything. Now was not the time to correct him. When he found the captain's cabin, he dumped his armload of goodies in there. She asked him why he did that. He told her that he was going to sleep here tonight, and wanted something clean to wear in the morning. One of the Sisters signalled her Mother, that she was ready to draw her sword, and lop the head off of this arrogant man. Mother signalled her to be calm. Since dinner time was approaching, she asked him if he would be joining them for dinner. He told her that he was going to eat on the ship. They were surprised that there was food on the ship. He told them that there had to be food on the ship, it is not like you can travel from one place to another in an instant. Sometimes you have to spend months aboard the ship. So you have to be able to eat drink and sleep, along with whatever else you do on the ship. He led them to the galley, and pulled out a frozen meal for each of them, and one for himself. They had never felt anything so cold. They asked him how you eat it. It seems hard enough that it could damage your teeth. He told them that you need to warm it up first. He operated two units at once, and had two piping hot meals in no time. He handed them to the ladies and told them to be careful, it was quite hot. Then he warmed up the other two. The ladies could not believe that the meal that was so cold, just a moment before, could now be too hot, until one of them did not hold it properly, and the steam coming off of it, almost burnt her hand. The other Sister had to catch it before she dropped it, and used the force so she would not burn herself. He had his back to them, since he was removing the other two trays of food. So did not see anything. He handed one tray to the Sister that almost burnt her hand because she was not holding anything. He found clean utensils for everyone. Then he removed the cover from his tray, and dug right in. They watched what he did, then tentatively tried it. The food was rather bland and chewy. He asked them what they thought. The Clan Mother politely said, that it is fine, if you're a pirate. He told them that he grew up eating this stuff. The one Sister whispered, "That would explain a lot about him." Her Mother accidentally stepped on her toe. She told him that she has to go and join the others for dinner, and thanked him for sharing the food. She almost said, our food. She told the Sisters that they have to stay and keep an eye on him. She would send them something to eat later. After he finished his tray, he started eating from the tray the Clan Mother left behind. The Sisters wanted to hand him their trays as will, but politely pecked at the food instead. They noticed that each tray was divided in sections, so they sampled a little from each section. They both found the section that held something sweet. At least they found something that seemed interesting. After he finished Mother's tray, he put all of his stuff away, then showed the ladies were they could put their trays and utensils, when they were done. He told them he has exhausted, and heading to bed. As soon as he left, they put their trays away, then wondered what they were going to do. The big problem for them, was that they could not see the sky, so they had no sense of time. In the morning he was wearing different clothing, and he was wearing shoes, instead of his slipper things. He had also cleaned himself up. He went back to the galley and heated up something for his breakfast. They asked him, if he was eating the same thing for breakfast that he had made last night? He told them he was eating something totally different, and offered to make them some. They were curious and hungry, so they told him he could. He also made them some tea, just like he made for himself. After tasting the tea, they asked him if he could make some for Mother. He thought they were saying, that the other woman was their mother. He never would have thought that she was that old. The breakfast he made them was better than porridge cakes, and the tea went nice with it. They ranked this meal much higher than what they tried last night. When Mother showed up, they handed her the tea. She also liked it. She asked him where he got the tea leaves. He showed her. She asked if there was any more like it in on the ship. He did not think so. She took the container, and gave it to one of the Sisters to take back to the village, for special occasions. After the demonstration, she would send a runner to the Clan Mother of the Red Hills Clan, so she could send one of her Sisters aboard each of her ships, to see if they have the same tea. It was the one item on the ship that had value to them. After his breakfast, he was ready to give them a demonstration. They had set up some wild gourds as targets for him to shot at. He told them that these blaster rifles were designed for assault, which means close in fighting. Not long range sniper fire. The Sisters thought that the gourds they set up where for close range shooting. They asked him how close he wanted them. He asked them to set them up at half the distance. They thought at that distance, you would not need to aim. They brought most of them closer, but left some further out, for when it was their turn to shoot. He brought out one rifle, and showed them the different parts of the rifle they would need to be familiar with, including the power supply. He pointed out that the power supply was not at full charge, which meant that it had been fired. They asked him, how many shots they could get on a fully charged power supply. He told them that he was not that familiar with this particular model. Most blaster rifles can be fired between fifteen to twenty times before the power supply needs to be replaced. Soldiers in an army would often have four or five power supplies on them, so that they can switch them as needed. Pirates and Slavers, only expect a short fight, so they rarely carry extra power supplies. He then told them how to aim the rifle. After that, he let them handle the blaster rifle. Taking the power supply out, checking it, putting it back in, and aiming it. He then showed them how to switch it on, and take it off safety. He then fired the rifle, only killing half a gourd. He then brought out a number of rifles. He did not want them taking the power supplies, all the way to dead. He let a few of them try them at once. Most of them shot at the gourds that were further away. Killing them, until there were no pieces of gourd left to kill. He thought that if he was training them for his army, he would have them all training as snipers. After the training session was over. He told them that he would like to take all the weapons back to town with him. He wanted to train the town's people how to use them, so that they could help the Rancor in defending the town. The Mother thought that that was a reasonable thing to ask, and since no one wanted them. She said that he could take them back to town with him. She asked him, what else, he wanted to take back to town with him? He told her that he has not finished checking everything yet. But he found something interesting in the captain's cabin last night that he wanted to show her. He was hoping that she would come alone, but she brought her two daughters with her. He brought out some bottles of liqueur that he found in the captain's cabin. He poured a little into one glass for himself, and a little into a glass for the mother. She took a smell. It was a strange smell, but she had smelt something like it before. She watched how he drank it, then did the same. She said it tasted like water with fire in it, and enough sweetness to round out the taste. She asked him if there was anymore, because these bottles looked almost empty. He told her that there were a couple of bottles more. She said that was good, because she wanted all her girls to try it. He was heartbroken, the one bottle was full, and he was hoping to sneak it off of the ship without her knowing. This might be the last bit of alcohol he might ever see in his life. He went back to the captain's cabin, and retrieved all of the bottles. He decided to start serving the drinks from the cheapest liqueurs. That way he might be able to have what remains of the more expensive liqueurs to take back with him. He found all the cups in the galley and started pouring a small amount in each. The two daughters interrupted him, and asked if they could try what he shared with Mother. That was the expensive stuff, he reluctantly agreed, since none of the other girls had showed up yet, and he would have time to hide it. When he finished pouring some into each cup. He realised that he should be taking these cups back with him. They were better than the wooden ones they had in town. He decided to take all the utensils as well, even though they were meant to be used once, then put in recycling. He needed to go through this galley more carefully, he might find other items that might be useful, that he never thought about before. It was interesting to watch the faces of the girls when they drank their sample. Some did not like it, but most were surprised. When they asked him about it. He told them that most adults on his planet consume alcohol, in one form or another most every day. Some have formed a dependence on it. What he just served them was a form that was consumed on special occasions. It was both stronger, and sweeter, then what was normally consumed. Quite often it was served after a meal. Some of the girls claimed they could feel some heat in their cheeks after drinking it. Mother let him know that he could take what was left back to town with him. There was not enough left, for everyone to have another sample. But there was enough left for him to have on his own. He quickly took the bottles that were left, and wrapped a pillow around each one. To protect them on the trip back to town. He told the mother that he would like to take one bed, with its mattress back to town. He would have really liked to have been able to take the captain's bed back with him, but it was built right into the cabin. He could have taken the mattress, but then he would have needed to build a bedframe for it. What he settled on was the top bunk, of a bunk bed, that looked like it had never been used. It was metal framed. He showed the mother how it was connected to the lower bunk, and how it was bolted to the bulkhead. He told her he was going to look for some tools to disconnect it. When he left the cabin, he heard some zaps. Then he saw the mother carrying the bed with its mattress off of the ship. He was quite surprised, he thought the bed would have been two heavy for one person to handle. He went back into the cabin to see how she managed to disconnect it from everything. He found the parts of the bunk just below where it had been connected, looked like the metal had been melted. He picked up the end of a bolt that he found on the floor. It was quite warm. He put it in his pocket to have a look at it later. He found some coins in one cabin that were from his planet. He pocketed them, hoping that no one saw him, but the Clan Mother did. She wondered why he pocketed those coins, when all the other coins he found, he put aside for them, so that they could melt them down to make personal decorations. She guessed that those coins must mean something personal to him. He found the ship's armoury, it was just a weapon's locker, where all the blaster rifles were stored. He found the connections to recharge the power source from the rifles, and some extra power supplies. Then he saw them, two blaster pistols, and a holster. He put on the holster. She asked him, what was he doing? He told her that this belt is to hold a blaster pistol, a smaller version of a blaster rifle, but just as powerful. Then he took one of the pistols, and placed it in the holster. She told him to take it off, and put it away. She did not want him walking around with something so powerful strapped to his hip. He thought it was a request. She had given him an order. When he did not do anything. She said it again. When he still did not do anything, she snatched the pistol from him using the force. He could not figure out, how she was able to move so fast, to get it from him. What she did next, chilled his heart. With her one hand, she crushed the barrel of the blaster pistol, like it was nothing. He was not strong enough to do any damage to the blaster pistol by squeezing it. She was a lot stronger than she looked. "When I tell you to do something. Do it! It is not a request! Everything you have asked for, belongs to the clan, we are not giving them to you. We are letting you use them. If we do not like the way you are using it, then we will come and take everything from you. Is that clear?" He thought about the bed, the clothes, and the precious bottles. "I hear you, and understand." "Good." It took him a while to recover. He picked up the crushed pistol. At least the power source wasn't damaged. He took the holster off, and put everything back into the locker. He grabbed some blankets, and started wrapping the blaster rifles in them, once there power sources were fully charged. He emptied the content of the gun locker onto another blanket and wrapped it up. He kept piling everything onto the bed. After he had removed everything he could think of taking, he found some straps on the ship, and secured everything to the bed. He showed the mother how to raise and lower the ramp. He was hoping that they would seal up the ship. She told him that they will leave it open, so that creatures can use it. He realised that he would not be able to come back to the ship to recharge the power supplies. He asked her if they have a cart that they could load the bed and everything on it, onto. She replied there was no need, the two Sisters will have no trouble carrying it back to town with him. Now he understood, two sisters, like in her daughters. If they are as strong as their mother, then they should be able to handle it. They each grabbed one end of the bed frame, just above the mattress, and ran off. He had trouble keeping up with them on the return trip. Just like he had, running to the ship. He thought they would slow down, because they were carrying so much weight, but it did not seem to bother them. All the way back to town, he thought of the pros and cons, of having a woman that strong involved in his personal life."

Krillgan squeezed his father's shoulder, and asked him what "pros and cons" mean. Chitrah had to think for a while. The concept was simple. But explaining it to someone so young wasn't. "Let's say that you are the captain of a starship, and some equipment was malfunctioning. You have to make the decision on whether you send someone outside the ship right now to repair it, or do you take a chance, and try to make it to the closest spaceport to repair it. Either way, the chance of losing the ship with everyone in it is quite high. To help you make that decision, you have to look at what is good, and what is bad, about each choice. That is called looking at the pros and cons." Krillgan thought about it, and determined he had a good enough understanding of what his father was trying to tell him. He let the Captain know he could continue.

"The offworlder finally decided, when he caught a glimpse of the town. That as tempting as it was in having a relationship with the beautiful mother, or one of her lovely daughters, in the end the relationship would be bad for his health. As they came closer to town, he realised that he never saw the village that the mother, her daughters, and all the girls were from. Are they hiding something? Just like he thought the other women, who took him to the other ships were hiding something. Is he being tested by the people who are really in charge? He had them leave the bed with everything on it, outside his house, he was feeling self-conscience about having an empty house. He told them he could handle everything from there. He took everything off of the bed and piled it just inside the door to one side. Then he tried lifting the bedframe and mattress. How did she do it? He took the mattress off of the bedframe, and struggled getting just that up to the bedroom, and leaned it against one wall. He finally had to recruit someone from town to help him with the bedframe. As the person was leaving the house, they noticed the pile of material near the door, and asked the offworlder what that was all about. The offworlder grabbed a bundle, and suggested that they go have their dinner. Then he would show everyone some of what he brought back with him. The bright red blanket was not hard for anyone to see. The colour was hard to miss, and they had never seen that material before. Everyone was whispering during dinner, asking if anyone knew what it was. They asked the guy who helped him if he knew. He told them that he did not have a clue, but he has a whole pile of them back at his house. After dinner, while some went to clean up, the rest of the town's people sat at the tables, watching the offworlder sipping his cup of local tea. No one wanted to leave. After the cleanup crew were finished, one of the ladies walked up to him, and asked him if he was going to show them what he brought back. He loved this sense of drama, the anticipation of the unknown. He got up and sat on the table, with the bundle behind him, forcing their attention on him. He told them that he had heard them talk. They all wanted to do something, when the Rancor ran out of the town to battle pirates. "I know that helpless feeling you get when you see someone fighting your battles for you." He knew that they had blaster rifles dropped by the pirates the Rancor killed, but none of them knew how to use them. "You have thought about asking me to show you how to use your blaster rifles. But you are too embarrassed to, because you do not have enough for everyone. You feel that it would not be right if only a few of you used them, and the rest sat around feeling more helpless. As of tonight, this all changes." He took the bundle, and reached inside, and pulled out a blaster rifle. He told them that the two ladies came and got him, because they had captured a pirate ship. They wanted to know about some of the stuff found on the ship. They also wanted to know about these. Now that they know how to safely handle them, and how to fire them. They have no more use for them, and let me bring them all back to town with me. So that you could use them." They asked if he was sure that he brought back enough. The man who helped him carry in the bedframe, told them, that from the pile he saw, there was enough for everyone, and then some. Then one of the ladies asked him about the red material, he stood on a bench and opened it up. He told them it was a blanket taken from the pirate ship, he also brought back a bed that was removed from the pirate ship. Because he was more comfortable sleeping on that type of bed. Everyone from town wanted to see the bed, but no one thought it was polite to ask. Later the man who helped him carry in the bedframe described it to them. He told them that it was made completely from metal. He did not think it would be very comfortable, because the pieces of metal would dig into your skin when you lay down. He had not seen the mattress. The offworlder informed everyone that he could now return all the bedding material they let him have, when he first arrived, because he has more than he needs from the ship. They had a quick town's meeting, and decided that they could spend some time right after breakfast, learning how to safely handle the rifles, and learning how to shot. The offworlder could bring all the blaster rifles with him, when he comes for breakfast, and they can then start their training, right there in the dining area. Learning how to safely handle the blaster rifle. They asked him if he would need any help carrying the rifles to the kitchen. He asked if two of them could stop by his house on their way to breakfast, that should be enough help. The two people who lived closest to him, said they would stop by. The town latter learnt from people who visited his house, that the metal frame had something placed on it that was called a mattress. It was quite comfortable to lay on. Instead of leaving the blaster rifles wrapped in the blankets he had taken from the pirate ship, he bundled them in the bedding material the town's people had given him, when he first arrived. He was afraid that the town's people would not give the blankets back. He was right, the town's people were disappointed that the blaster rifles were not wrapped in these new blankets. So they had no idea how many he had. After all, if he had a lot, then he should share."

"He taught them the basics on safely handling the blaster rifles. When everyone felt comfortable with their rifle, they all went outside. Just outside of town, on the southwest side. There was a large rock. It was around waist high, and around three people wide. It became the target for everyone to shoot at. After they had fired off a number of shots, he had them all power off their weapons and check their power supplies. He reminded them that they have no way to recharge it, so when the power supply indicated it had no more juice, then they won't be able to fire any more. Now he did have some spares, so they should let him know if they were getting low. He assumed that everyone would be looking after their own rifle. He then tried to get everyone to line up in formation. He wanted to teach them how to march, and behave like a military unit. The people resisted. They questioned why they would need to know that, when they would just be firing at pirates from the top of the palisade. He told them that they would need to know that, if any of the clans decided to attack the town. They all started laughing, they thought he was joking. When they saw that he was serious, they explained to him, that apart from the pirate raids. This town was the safest place to live, on this planet. Every clan had sworn an oath to protect the town, from themselves, and from others. They were neutral ground for all the clans. No one was allowed to fight, unless they were actually protecting the town, and the town's people would have to back them up, or they were in big trouble. That is why they hold their Council of Mothers here. Now when he heard Council of Mothers, he thought it was a bunch of women getting together, and talking baby stuff. They explained that the reason they were building the compounds for each clan, was so that they had a place for their Rancor, or their Rancor would fight when they came for their meetings. This was how he found out that the clans' ability to control Rancor was a relatively new thing. Now he just lost his motivation for forging the town's people, into his personal small army, his dreams of planetary conquest, were quickly starting to fade. He told the people to stay away from the rock, for the next few days. It had just absorbed a lot of energy, and would burn them very bad if they touched it. They went back to their collective work. They had already completed the compound for the Singing Mountain Clan, and had already started working on the next one. That evening instead of meeting in the kitchen area for dinner, they decided to eat outside, and cook dinner on the rock. Everyone felt like they were celebrating something, even the Rancor came out and joined them. Some of the town's people approached the offworlder, and talked to him about the safest way to store the blaster rifles, because they had small children, and did not want them getting their curious hands on them. He talked to them about various techniques for storing firearms, including describing the ship's armoury, which was a fancy storage locker. He had a small piece of leather on him, and he touched a small branch against the rock, so the tip turned to charcoal. He drew a design for a rack that they could make out of wood that would securely hold the blaster rifles, yet would give them quick access, for when there was a pirate raid. They took the design he had sketched on the leather, and went around talking to the different groups. He did not think any more about it, until three days later, after breakfast, they took him to an empty house on the south side of the town, right next to the steps leading up to the top of the wall. When they led him inside, they had made gun racks, and fastened them to one wall. They had made enough racks to cover the one wall. Even though they only had enough blaster rifles to fill in only a quarter of the slots. They told him that this was now going to be their town armoury, and they wanted him to be in charge of it. He was speechless. Even though they had put it together quickly, the workmanship was quite good. When he was finally able to speak, he asked them why they never made anything for his house. They told him, that he never asked for their help. If he would have started a project, they would have helped him finish it. Later that day, he drew a sketch of a dresser he would like to have made. He also drew a clothes closet and a linen closet. But the dresser was the most important piece. He took the sketch with him to dinner and asked them how he could have it built. They told him where and when they meet to work on wood working projects. If he was willing to put his time in, they were willing to help him with his project. When they helped him carry the new dresser into his home, one of them noticed a damp spot in the middle of the main floor of his house, and asked him about it. He thought that maybe his roof leaked, and they would have to fix it before the next rain. He told them that he bathes there, because he does not know where else to do it. That's how he found out that he had a room that was designed for bathing. There was even a slight slope to the floor so that the water would drain away. He felt really embarrassed, because he did not know what the room was for. He thought it was just a large closet. He was told that they all had wooden tubs in their bathing room. He might want to consider it for his next project. He told them he had something else in mind for his next project, but he would definitely add it to the list of things he needs to make."

"The Singing Mountain Clan had sent a young lady to inspect the compound that the town had made for them. She was very excited about it. It could easily house more than half the women in her clan. The offworlder was surprised to hear her refer to them as Sisters. There was lots of room for their Rancor mounts. She told the town's people that she would be giving a good report to her Mother about the excellent work that they did. The town's people were very happy to hear that. They told the offworlder that to them, the Singing Mountain Clan, was the one they wanted to please the most. Because they were the ones that provided them with their herd of Rancor. Without their help, they would still be helpless against pirate attacks. That is why they designed their compound to be larger than all the others. The offworlder enjoyed talking with the young lady, he found her very flirtatious. That night there was a pirate attack. The town's sentry had alerted everyone, and went to the Singing Mountain Clan compound to awaken the young lady. Everyone had grabbed their blaster rifles from the armoury, and where now waiting on the town wall. The Rancor were waiting at the town gate. Ready to charge out as soon as the ship landed, and the gate was open. The town's people were whispering to one another, to remember, "Don't shoot the Sister". He wondered who they were talking about. He did not know that they had a religious order on the planet. The pirate ship was an unusual design, because it had a laser gun turret on its' side, and not just on the top and bottom. A pirate was in the gun turret, apparently they had heard about the town's Rancor. As soon as the town's gate opened, the pirate opened up on the Rancor that rushed out, with his dual lasers. Fortunately he was not used to shooting at something that close. His first shot straddled a Rancor's leg, vaporising two large divots in the ground. If he would have hit the Rancor's leg, he would have destroyed it. The offworlder recognised the danger the Rancor were in. He told everyone to shot at the gun turret, to blind the pirate, our all their Rancor would be killed. He also warned them to stay behind cover, because the only place the gunner would be able to see to shot, was the bright point of light they created, every time they shoot. The gunner did start raking the top of the palisade, with laser fire. As the Rancor approached the ship. The young lady that had flirted with him, suddenly appeared in the gate. He wanted to warn her away, until she produced a ball of fire in her hands, and threw it at the pirates, throwing it right between the Rancor. Next she quickly ran up behind a Rancor, using its body as a shield. She then jumped over the Rancor, with very little effort. Landing right in the midst of the pirates. Dispatching them very quickly with her sword. Then she launched herself at the laser gun turret, which made everyone on the wall stop shooting. She hit both laser barrels hard enough with her sword to bend them, making them useless, then landed on them. Smoke started to billow in the gun turret from the malfunctioning lasers. She smashed the glass on the turret with a punch from her left hand. The offworlder was stunned, watching all this with his mouth open. He knew that she had just shattered special optical glass that was at least 15cm thick on older model turrets, 20cm on newer ones. She then stabbed the pirate gunner with the sword in her right hand. She did a back flip off of the bent laser barrels. Landing safely on the ground, as the ship had already lifted off and was turning to speed out of there. She then ran into town, then appeared on the wall with two pails of water. She disappeared again and came back with two more. He could not imagine how she was able to get the water so quickly. If he had been at the well, he would still be cranking up the water for the first pail. The lady beside him, jabbed him in his ribs with her elbow. "Are you just going to stare at her, or are you going to help." He quickly took his shirt off, and soaked it in one of the pails of water. He then placed his wet shirt over one of the divots the dual lasers had made in the wooden palisade, because there were glowing embers inside. They had to do this with each one, to prevent them from erupting into flames. After they were done. All the town's people considered him the hero of the battle, not her. It was his quick thinking, and having everyone redirect their fire that saved their herd of Rancor. They all wanted to go to the kitchen area to celebrate. He told them that he would meet them there, after he goes home and gets a dry shirt. He returned with a dry shirt and three bottles, and enough cups for everyone. He put some of the liquid from the bottles into the cups, then told everyone that they had to grab a cup, than they had to do what he did. They all took a cup and sniffed it. He then raised his cup and said, "To the town, and to the Rancor." Then he downed the contents of his cup. Everyone followed his example, some started coughing after downing their drink. He offered some of what was left to whoever wanted more as he put some in his cup. They saw that there wasn't much left, so they said he could have it. He reminded them, about when he had first arrived, how he wanted a drink. This was what he was looking for. Then he poured the contents of his cup back into the bottle. He actually did not need it. The beastmaster asked him if he would come to the Rancor. She had informed them of what he did for them, and they want to thank him. The Sister spoke for the Rancor, as it was easier for her to do so. Because it was dark, it was harder for the beastmaster to understand what they were trying to say. The one male Rancor told him, that no matter how annoying he gets, he promises not to swat him anymore. Which made the whole town laugh. It made the Sister wonder what the story behind that was. He told the Rancor, that he would try and not be as annoying as he was. Which made the Rancor laugh. Some of the ladies in the kitchen, had been saving some ingredients, for a special occasion. They decided that tonight was it. They made sweet treats for everyone. They even set aside some for parents with children to take home for them. While they enjoyed their treats, the offworlder confirmed tonight's revelation. The women who ride the Rancor are not flesh and blood sisters, but are Sisters as a title. So their mother is not their flesh and blood mother, but their Mother as a title. They said that some were flesh and blood sisters, and some were mother and daughter. But as he said, all Sisters are force users. Their Mothers were the Clan's Mother, or leader of the clan. Also one of the most powerful force users in the clan. They were actually surprised at how long it had taken him to figure this out. The town's people noticed a dramatic change in his behaviour after this. He was no longer arrogant and aloof. He was now easy to talk to. Easy to socialise with. They found his journal when he passed away. He had made it out of the leather he received for helping in the tanning process."

Krillgan squeezed his father's shoulder, and asked him what a journal was. The Captain said he can answer that question. There are some people who record the events that happen in their life in a book. Some do it every day. That is usually called a diary. Others do it whenever something important happens in their life. On a ship they are also required to make entries into a journal, only on a ship they are called logs. The Captain called up the ship's log on his computer screen. His cabin, and the engineer's cabin, where the only ones that had computer terminals. But the ship's computer had no audio-visual communications with the room. He showed Krillgan were he recorded them coming aboard his ship on Manaan. Then he recorded them departing his ship at the Sith planet. Andriel asked him why he choose that planet. He said that after what happened there that day. He was sure the Moff would arrange that that day's data, was either corrupted, or lost altogether. He was pretty sure that someone would be smart enough to know that his ship was the only one that could possibly have removed them from Manaan. So he wanted them to hit a dead end when they went through the ship's log. It was the best he could do to protect them. Chitrah asked if there were any other log entries concerning them. He told them that the only other entries were in the Captain's personal log. The only one other than himself, who would be allowed to read it, was the man who would become the captain of his ship, after him, and he has not yet found that man. Now if he passes away before he has found the next captain, or if someone tries boarding the ship. The ship's computer will permanently erase the captain's log, and write garbage data over it, which it will then be forced to erase. Chitrah was satisfied that the Captain had taken every precaution to protect them. Andriel would ask him about it later. The Captain also mentioned that because there is no spaceport on Dathomir, there is no requirement for him to record that he was even there.

Krillgan was satisfied with the answer, so the Captain continued.

"The offworlder wrote in his journal, that when he first came to Dathomir, he thought he was a big fish in a little pond. Now he knew that he was a little fish in a little pond, full of a lot of big fish. He was fine, as long as he did not make waves, and disturb the big fish. He also wrote that if he was able to take just one clan to any world, he could control that world with ease. But there were five clans on this world. He did not think that if he was able to bring every army from every planet he knew, fully equipped. That he would be able to dislodge even one of the clans. Now, whenever anyone comes to Dathomir, they are required to read his journal. Because I have read part of it, and they know that I would tell you about what I read, they will not make you read it. He did mention one regret in his journal, he regretted not marrying, and having children. What he did do was go out and meet the new political prisoners, when they arrived, so that they did not make the same mistakes he did. For quite a while, there were more males then females in neutral town. Because many of them did not want to enter into relationships where the female is so much more powerful, then the male. The Mothers started sending single non force using females, with the excuse that they were responsible for maintaining the clan's compound. The town would feed them, and let them help with everyday life. Some would return to the clan with a new husband in tow."

"There was one offworlder that became friendly with one of the clans' Sisters. He talked her into letting him go hunting with her. When she agreed, he borrowed a blaster rifle from the armoury, without first asking permission. They went a fair ways from town, and came across a majestic Verne bull. He was able to stay down wind of it. He was able to approach close enough, to make a nice clean kill. She handed him her knife to clean it and skin it. He asked her what the knife was for. She told him that as it was his kill, he was responsible for cleaning it. He told her that he did not want anything from the animal, because there was no one in the town that could mount the head for him. He just wanted to kill it, he said that there were enough scavengers around to take care of the body. She tore the blaster rifle right out of his hands, and smashed it to itsy bitsy little pieces. She could not believe he used her for his sick pleasure. She told him that she would give the animal the respect it deserved. She pointed in the direction of town, and told him to leave quickly, and not turn around, or the scavengers will find another body to deal with. He took off running, until he felt that he was a safe distance from her, and turned around to see what she was doing. When he did, an arrow landed between his legs. He did not stop running until he reached town. Huffing and puffing, as he entered through the gate. The Sister took the dead Verne to her village and asked the Herd Mother, if she would accept it. The Herd Mother told her that they don't normally kill a Verne bull in its prime, because their meat is tough and stringy. The Herd Mother noticed that there was something wrong with the Sister. So she told her that she has not had a visit from a Gibbit bird in quite a while, and needs to clean her teeth. She can use one of the horns from the creature to pick her teeth until a Gibbit bird returns. The Sister was very grateful to the Herd Mother, and ran off to find her Clan Mother. When she found her, she fell at her feet crying, confessing everything that had happened. The Mother sent runners to all the clans, naming the offworlder, and telling them what he had done. All the clans agreed to have no dealings with the man. If they were dealing with someone in the town, and he came by, the Sister would stop what she was doing. She would tell him point blank, to get out of her sight, or she would kill him, because the town's neutrality agreement did not extend to him. When the town found out what he had done. Taking a blaster rifle with close to a fully charged power source, and not returning it. The town's people held an emergency meeting. They were thinking of expelling him from the town, as punishment for his crimes. The offworld community, approached the town's people, and pleaded that he not be expelled from the town, because that would be certain death. The town's people told them that he was now their responsibility. He can no longer live in the house they gave him, and he must return everything the town has given him, since he arrived. He is also not allowed to eat any meals in the town's kitchen area. He quickly became the most hated man on the planet, as far as all the clans and the town's people were concerned. Two months later, his body was found outside of town. The town did to his body what the clans do for pirates and nightsisters. They threw his body into the ocean. When they were asked to report before the Council of Mothers about his death, they told them, that he was apparently a very clumsy individual. He accidentally fell backwards on a knife, repeatedly. They had agreed to call his death, accidental. The Mothers all agreed, that no further investigation was necessary."

"The planet found out through the political exiles, that there was a group of planets near the core of the galaxy, that have formed an alliance, and called themselves the Republic, and were expanding their sphere of influence. Some of the married political exiles were allowed to bring their wives with them. It was sad when one wife did not have any force sensitivity, and the pull from the moons was tearing her apart. The only thing the town could do, was to give the husband a knife, and told him to be merciful. Make it quick, because there is no cure."

"When the first offworlder was entering his senior years, the first merchant ship showed up. He tried purchasing passage for one of the political exiles, using the blaster rifles they had accumulated. The wall was now full. The merchant told them that the blaster rifles they have, are considered relics, and have no value. The merchant did allow him to recharge every working power source. He told them that many planets are giving them away, so he would be able to bring him a lot, for next to nothing, the next time he came through. The only commodity the offworlder had that the merchant was interested in was the leather he had. The only item the merchant had that the offworlder was interested in trading for, was the tea in his galley. The merchant took two nice leather hides in exchange. Even the town's person watching the exchange knew the merchant got a much better deal, and asked him why he did it? He told them that he did this deal, to entice the merchant to come back. The first planet he goes to will snap up the leather at a good profit for the merchant. Next time he will bring much more tea, because he has seen a nice pile of nice leather hides, hoping for as good a profit. As long as they trade with good quality furs and leathers that the merchant will be able to sell easily, for a good price. Than he will keep coming back. He was asked to explain his transaction to all the town's people. They gave him an empty house next to the south gate, to be the town's trading post. They started storing extra furs, reptile skins, and leather hides in the trading post. So he could have them on hand, when the merchant returned. When the next Sister came to town, they told her about the merchant ship, and the tea they were able to trade for, in exchange for leather, and how the offworlder believes he will have more tea, the next time he comes by. She informed her Mother, who sent runners to all the clans, because the Clan Mother from the Red Hills Clan, let them taste the tea she was able to get off of the two ships that attacked her, during one of their Council of Mothers meetings. They all enjoyed it, and everyone had an excess of leather hides."

"One day a mad Rancor, came near the village of the Clan Mother with the Dathomirite short sword. The Herd Mother yelled at her to kill it before it infects her children. The Clan Mother told her, for her to use force lightning to kill it, would be a slow and painful death. It might also send the creature on a destructive rampage before it died. The Herd Mother told her to use her sword. It was able to easily cut through the hide of a Rancor. If she quickly climbs up the creatures back. She can then stab it down through the skull on the top of its head. Piercing the brain, which should kill it instantly. This was news to the Clan Mother, and she wondered why the Herd Mother had never shared this before. The Herd Mother made a noise that all the Rancor knew meant keep far away from this creature. The Sisters were forced to get off of their Rancor mounts, if they wanted to help their Mother, because none of the Rancor would come close. As the Clan Mother approached, she noticed the mad Rancor was foaming out of its mouth, and there were small amounts of blood coming out of its eyes, nose, and ears. She ran around behind it, which caused the creature to stop advancing, and start turning around. When she jumped up onto its back. It roared spraying foam for a few meters. The Clan Mother then jumped to its neck, dealing the death blow to the head. She jumped down off of the dead Rancor, to walk back to the village. But the Herd Mother screamed at one of the Sisters to tell her to stop. The Clan Mother was too far away to hear the Herd Mother. The Herd Mother told her that everything that has touched the mad Rancor, must be burnt. Any fluids that has left its body, must be burnt, the path that it walked, must be burnt. Any creature it has made contact with, must be killed and burnt. If possible, the source of its madness needs to be found and destroyed. For another Rancor to touch any of these things, is pretty much a guarantee that they also will go mad, before the large moon completes a full cycle. The Sister asked the Herd Mother if she expects them to kill their Clan Mother and burn her body. The Herd Mother told her to stop being a silly human. Of course she does not expect them to kill their Mother. She would not have sent her if that was a possibility. But she must remove all her clothes, and burn them with the mad Rancor. The sword also needs to be burnt. It will not hurt the sword itself, but a new handle will be needed. She asked the Herd Mother how her Mother can be purified, without her being burnt. She told the Sister that the Kwa pasted force lightning over their bodies, to purify themselves, after they were forced to deal with a mad Rancor. The Clan Mother told the Sisters, that she can stay where she is for now. They need to gather what they need for a funeral pyre for the Rancor, and extend it out from the body for at least two meters. They should get some pitch, and place it on the path the Rancor took. She also needs her best hunters to trace back the path the Rancor took, without stepping on it themselves. And kill every creature that has come in contact with the Rancor. If there is another infected Rancor out there. They need to tell her, because someone will need to take the sword, to kill it. The hunters followed the Rancor's path the best they could, marking it so that pitch could be spread on it. They only found one animal that had made contact with the Rancor. It was half dead from its wounds. So they put it out of its misery, with a couple well places arrows. When they could not find the Rancor's path anymore. They marked where it ended, then went further, in case they could pick it up again. They were not able to determine the source of the Rancor's madness. They went back and reported to Mother. Mother suggested that they backtrack along the path the creature took. It may have been the source of the Rancor's madness. She then relayed the information to the Herd Mother. The Herd Mother thought it was prudent of her to have them track the creatures trail. The hunters tracked the trail to a badly decomposed Rancor body. Now that they have seen it. They believed that this was the source of the Rancor's madness, and like their Mother suspected, it was the animal that had transmitted the madness to the Rancor. They tracked down every creature that had tracks coming from this body and killed it. The hardest to kill, where the half dozen Ravens, that had feasted on it. The good thing was, that the Ravens seemed mad, because they kept returning to feast on the body. One of the hunters stayed to guard the body, while the other returned to Mother to make her report. The Herd Mother agreed that it was probably the source of the madness, and confirmed that every creature would need to be burnt. After The Clan Mother had lifted the dead Rancor's body using the force. The Sisters used the force to spread the combustible materials underneath. The Clan Mother then removed all her clothing, and shoved it into the wood pile. Two Sisters lifted her body while she started passing force lightning over her body. She had to stop because it felt like a hundred shear mite bites, and she looked closely at her body. The pain she was feeling was from all the hairs on her body, melting. She told one of the Sisters to go get a very sharp knife, because she needs to shave off, all of the hair from off her body. The one Sister asked her why she doesn't use her sword. She replied that the sword has Rancor blood on it. If she nicks herself using the sword, there is a chance that she might become infected herself. If she did not become infected, she might become a carrier of the disease, and infect every Rancor in the herd. A Sister asked the Herd Mother, why she did not warn them about this? She said she did not know. The Kwa were reptiles, so they had no hair. When a sharp enough knife was found, one of the Sisters stripped off her own clothes, and took the knife to her Mother. Her Mother asked her why she did it. She told her Mother that she could not see everywhere on her body that she needs to shave, so it would be best if they shaved each other's body. The Sisters were all upset, because their Mother had lovely blond hair, and their Sister had lovely dark brown hair. All the Sisters considered them the two most beautiful women in their clan, and possibly all of the clans. It was a sources of pride for them, whenever they escorted their Mother to the Council of Mothers. Now because of the force lightning, there was a good chance it may never grow back. When they were ready, Mother had the Sisters pick their Sister up in the air, and then she enveloped her with force lightning. When the Herd Mother said it was enough. They carried her using the force to where it was safe to put her down. She went and found her clothes and dressed. In the meantime they lifted Mother into the air, and she enveloped herself in force lightning. This time there was no pain, just a tingling sensation all over her body. When the Herd Mother said enough, they brought her over to the side and set her down. Right away, a Sister wrapped a robe around her, and gave her a hot cup of tea, because she had been standing for a long time without any clothes on. Mother gave the signal, and the youngest Sister created a fire ball and threw it at the pyre. They chose the youngest, because they did not want an explosion when the fireball hit the wood. The Sisters then scattered to find more combustibles, for everything that needs to be burnt. Mother stood there watching the fire, sipping on her tea. After a while, when she felt it was safe, the Herd Mother came up to her, and thanked her for saving her children. "When were you going to tell me?" "That it was easy for you to kill a Rancor?" "Yes." "I don't know. I was hoping that you would never have to find out. There has not been a mad Rancor since the time of the Kwa." "I will have to tell the other Mothers." "You must do what you must. What has been done, cannot be undone." "I wish you would have told me sooner." "Can you understand why I did not?" "Yes. You did not trust me completely." "I thought I was protecting my children." At the next Council of Mothers, the Clan Mother had to explain what happened to her. The other Clan Mothers, except the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan, were disappointed that their Herd Mothers had not shared this information with them. After the meeting, the bald Clan Mother, came up to the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan. "I envy the relationship you have with your Herd Mother." "She asked me not to tell, and I agreed. I would have been interfering with your relationship with your Herd Mother. We both knew that if a mad Rancor did appear, the Herd Mother in the area would be forced to tell." "Did you know about the force lightning?" "Yes. But I did not know about the hair. Has it started growing back?" "My Sister's is growing back nicely. Mine has not. I think I may have damaged the roots." "I'm sorry. I was always jealous of your beautiful hair. I'm still jealous, because you still look beautiful." The bald Clan Mother was embarrassed, and pleased with the compliment. She thanked her rival, and felt much better heading home to her village."

"With the news that Dathomirite swords can kill Rancor, there was another push to try and find the rare metal. Every clan had at least one Dathomirite sword. When they did not have enough for a second sword, they usually had enough for a brace of Dathomirite daggers. The daggers made it easier to cut up a Rancor's hide to make leather armour for the Sisters. Sisters started hunting lone Rancor for this purpose. Unfortunately, some got carried away, and made a sport of it. When their Mothers found out they were furious. They berated the Sisters, telling them that only offworlders, and Nightsister, killed for sport. They made the Sisters go and apologise to their Herd Mother for their actions. Then expelled them from the clan for a couple of months, so that they could meditate on what they had done. After the Clan Mothers apologised to the Herd Mothers for the actions of their Sisters. The Herd Mothers told them that this was the reason they had not told them about the ability of the Dathomirite sword. This is what they were afraid of. The Clan Mothers could only reply, "What has been done, cannot be undone.""

"Around this time, there was an increase in the number of Sisters that turned to the dark side of the force, and became Nightsisters. Up until this time there had only been one or two Nightsisters per generation. They were banished to the Great Desert, and never heard from again. These Nightsisters, did not go to the Great Desert, instead they went to the Sandstone Mountain, in the southern coastal swamp, in the Singing Mountain Clan's territory. They appeared at a Council of Mothers, and pleaded that the southern coastal swamp be given to them as their own territory. The Singing Mountain Clan opposed this, because they claimed it was their territory. The other clans were jealous of the Singing Mountain Clan, because they had more than twice the territory, compared to any other clan, and they had no other clan near them that could challenge them for this territory. Whereas the other clans were constantly involved in disputes with their neighbours. Whenever a dispute came before the Council of Mothers, it was always the Singing Mountain Clan's Mother that usually had the deciding vote. Whenever the Frenzied River Clan was in dispute. The Singing Mountain Clan's Mother, would usually rule against them. They pointed out that the Misty Falls Clan, and the Great Canyon Clan, could not expand northward, because the mountains were blocking them. The Red Hills Clan could not expand northward, because the Frenzied River Clan was there. The only thing hindering the Frenzied River Clan was the upland swamp. They could easily build a road through the swamp, and have easy access to all the territory north of there. Now the Clan Mother of the Frenzied River Clan, treated that land as her own personal reserve, not allowing her Sisters to go up there and hunt. So when she saw that the Nightsisters would be well placed to challenge the Singing Mountain Clan for territory, she threw her support behind the Nightsisters, and convinced the other Clan Mothers to let them have the southern coastal swamp. The Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan was not very pleased with the council's ruling. Nor with the Clan Mother of the Frenzied River Clan, for being the force behind it. But she did not go against their ruling. She ordered her Sisters to not enter the south coastal swamp without her permission."

"What the Nightsisters did next, was very loathsome for all the clans. The Nightsisters sought out single families that lived independently, just after the first harvest. If they had children around Krillgan's age, they kidnapped them. Then they told the families that if they wanted to see their children again, they had to bring everything they had, especially their grain reserves, to the trail head leading from the lowland plateau, down to the south coastal swamp. Some of these families had domesticated the docile Brackaset as a beast of burden. The Brackaset was an ungulate that had folds of skin along its back that resembled armour. So the families desperate to do anything for their children, loaded up their Brackaset and themselves, first with all their grain supplies they had just harvested, then with whatever belongings they could easily carry, and abandoned everything else. If someone asked them what they were doing? They told them that they were moving to a new area, just as the Nightsisters instructed them. The people who knew them, did not believe them, since they hadn't harvested the late grain yet, when they left. When they arrived at the rendezvous point. A Nightsister would meet them, and make them drink a liquid. As they went down the trail to the swamp, it felt like their body and mind were separating. By the time they reached the Sandstone Mountain, the Nightsister had total control of their body. That is when they were told that their child was playing on the top of the mountain. Even though they were warned a number of times to keep away from the edge, they never listened. When the Adults were busy with their work, their child slipped over the edge. Because they were drugged, the only physical reaction they could show to the news, was their eyes would moisten. What really happened, is the Nightsisters could not put up with the crying child always asking for its parents. So they gave it the same drink mixture as was given to its parents. While the mixture was just right for adults, it was too strong for children, and the Nightsisters did not know how to adjust it. So the child would die. When the child died they would push it off of the Sandstone Mountain to make the body look like it had slipped over the edge. They would usually keep the husband drugged, so he would not try to fight them. But by the next day, the wife was usually drug free. They would demonstrate to the wife how complete their control over her husband is. By telling him to walk. At the last moment they would tell him to turn back, just before he stepped over the edge. They told her that if she would not cooperate, then they would not give the command to turn back. The Nightsisters wanted a spiral walkway curved inside the Sandstone Mountain. They wanted it big enough that a swamp Rancor could walk up it. But not big enough so an upland Rancor could fit inside. The Nightsisters had easy access to swamp Rancor, and they were the smallest of the Rancor on Dathomir. While the Singing Mountain Clan used upland Rancor, the largest of the Rancor on Dathomir. The drugged men could do the menial labour of hauling the rubble away. But it would be too hard for a Nightsister to control them to do the carving. A drugged man would carve a straight hole, right through the mountain if instructed to carve out the sandstone. So they needed slaves that were not drugged to carve the curved spiral walkway. If they thought a women was not working hard enough, they would make her watch that night, as they made her husband do degrading things, including having sex with a Nightsister."

Chitrah ignored Krillgan squeezing his shoulder. He wasn't ready to talk to him about sex.

"One time a wife went hysterical, and grabbed her husband by his feet, to try and stop him from what he was doing. So the Nightsister's Mother, handed the husband a strong branch, and told him to beat his wife. Most of the Nightsisters thought this was great entertainment, and started laughing when the blood started splattering."

Andriel was concerned that this was too graphic for Krillgan, and was getting ready to stop the Captain.

"The husband kept beating his wife, long after she was dead, because no one told him to stop. The hard thing for the men, is that they knew exactly what their bodies were doing, but could do nothing about it. After being under the drug's control for a year, and forced to do horrendous things during that time. The Nightsisters found that they no longer needed to keep the men drugged. Because they were now dead inside. They would do whatever the Nightsister wanted. When the Nightsister wanted it. For as long as the Nightsister wanted it. To the Nightsisters, they became the perfect men."

"One time, when two parents were passing by the town, to try to get to their kidnapped child back. They noticed that a Council of Mothers was in session. The mother took a chance, and went to the Mothers to plead with them for their help in trying to recover their kidnapped child from the Nightsisters. The Clan Mother of the Frenzied River Clan, told her that she was not clan, and had no right to appeal to the Clan Mothers, and had one of her Sisters throw the woman out. The other Mothers were stunned, because she actually had no authority to do what she did. But no one challenged her. The Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain whispered to one of her Sisters to go get the woman, and take her to their compound. After a few minutes, the Singing Mountains Clan's Mother, stopped the meeting, claiming they already had a strenuous enough of a day. They should retire to their compounds to rest, so they could start again in the morning. Most of the other Mothers agreed, because they were still trying to understand what just happened. When has any of them ever turned a person away that was asking for help? Clan member or non-clan member. The Singing Mountain Clan's Mother apologised to the woman, for the way she was treated when she came before the Council. No one expected the Clan Mother of the Frenzied River Clan to act that way. The woman and her husband told her everything about the kidnapping of their child by a Nightsister, and the instructions they were given. They were told that the clans would not help them, because they did not care about non-clan families. They believed that was true, by the way they were treated before the Council of Mothers. But when her Sister approached them, they knew someone cared. They had heard that this may have happened to other families. Because they would pack up all their food supplies, and pretty much abandon everything else, just as they had done. But no-one has ever heard from those families again. So no-one knows for sure if they had ever gotten their child back or not. They don't trust the Nightsisters to keep their word, so they need help. The Mother told them that she cannot give them the help that she would like to, because of the strange things happening with the Council of Mothers. But she will give them the help that she can. She told them to continue on to their rendezvous point in the morning. She suggested that they spend the night in the town. The town's people will look after them. It is best if it is not obvious that she is helping them. She did promise them, that when they need her people, they will be there. The couple thanked her. They took her advice and left the compound. They went to the town's east gate. They approached the first person they encountered. They told them that they heard that they could get a meal and shelter for the night. There was an empty house near the east gate. The town's person told them that they never had Brackaset in town before, even though they all like the cheese made from their milk. So they should take the Brackaset right into the house, because they do not want to tempt the Rancor herd. They asked them if they have enough bedding for themselves, or do they need more. The couple said they have enough for their own needs. So when the Brackaset were settled on the main floor. The town's person took them with her to the kitchen area to join them for dinner."

"After the couple left the Singing Mountain Clan's compound. The Mother sent one of the Sisters back to their territory, to assemble a team of Sisters, hopefully, she won't have to make it all the way back to the village. She gave detailed instructions concerning what she wanted, and who should be involved. She left her Rancor in the compound. She needed both speed and stealth. She could get good speed with her Rancor, but they were not known for stealth. She asked the other Sister that was with her, to keep an eye on the couple, to make sure they stayed safe, and to see if anyone else was watching them. She had her permission to eliminate any Nightsister that may be watching them, once they were in Singing Mountain Clan territory. She was not allowed to eliminate anyone while still in town's territory. After she left. The Mother cautiously made her way to the Red Hills Clan's compound. When the Sister recognised her, she quickly let her in. The Red Hills Clan has been friend to the Singing Mountain Clan, ever since they helped the Red Hills Clan acquire their Rancor herd, and help keep the Frenzied River Clan from encroaching on their territory. The Sister led her straight to her Mother. The Singing Mountain Clan's Mother told them about the kidnapping, and about what the couple had heard about similar incidents. She told the Clan Mother of the Red Hills Clan, that they need to stall the Council of Mothers meeting, without having all the Mothers go back to their village. The Clan Mother of the Red Hills Clan, told her that she would send one of her Sisters back to her village tonight. So that tomorrow during the day, she will receive an urgent message from her village, asking her to return to the village, because the Herd Mother is ill. The other Mothers will await her return, provided she is not away for too long. She believes that they will let her stay away for five days, before they suspend the meetings altogether, until the next time they can get together. This would give her the opportunity to go hunting one day with the Clan Mother of the Misty Falls Clan, to get her opinion on what is happening with the Clan Mother of the Frenzied River Clan. Then she could go hunting with the Clan Mother of the Great Canyon Clan to see what she thinks. The Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan thought it was an excellent idea. Then she made her way back to her compound. The Sister following the couple, was disappointed that no one else was following them. She did discourage some predators, from trailing them. But that was all the excitement she had."

"As the couple approached the rendezvous point, they were getting quite concerned. They had not seen anyone from the Singing Mountain Clan since leaving their compound, at the town. Their Mother promised that they would be there when they needed them, and they needed them, now! They stopped and waited, not knowing that a Nightsister was watching them. The Nightsister was also reaching out with the dark side of the force, looking for any signs of life in the area. When she was satisfied that there were no human life signs, just some small animals that seemed to live in the area. She approached the two parents. To the parents, she suddenly appeared out of nowhere. The Nightsister handed each of them a small hollowed out gourd, with some liquid in it. She told them that they must drink it all, before she can take them to their child. The mother asked if they could first be told, whether their baby was alright, before they drank the liquid. Suddenly three Sisters from the Singing Mountain Clan, seemed to appear out of nowhere, and said they would also like to hear the answer to the woman's question, because they were all standing in their territory. The Nightsister could not believe it. They were the small creatures' life force she had detected in this area all day, and there was another one approaching very quickly down the trail the parents had come down. She was trapped. She crouched down into a ball, and put her arms defensively over her head. "Please don't kill me. I was only doing what I was told to do. I really don't want to be a Nightsister anymore." They told her to answer the woman's question. She told them that their son is dead. He died shortly after being brought to the Sandstone Mountain, just like all the children that had been brought before him. The Nightsister thought she was dead for sure, now that she had told them about the children. She just hoped her death would be quick, not the way the Nightsisters would do it, once they found out she had betrayed them. The mother collapsed sobbing into her husband's arms. The husband had to quickly snatch her gourd away from her, to prevent her from drinking it, or spilling its contents onto the ground. The Sister that came up behind them. Took the two gourds from him, allowing him to envelope his wife in his arms, and start crying in her hair. The Sisters asked the Nightsister where the child's body was. She told them where at the base of the Sandstone Mountain, they would find the boy's body, in a coarse cloth sack. They asked the child's parents, if they wanted them to retrieve the body for them. The parents both indicated that they would. The Nightsister told them to be careful, the child would be quite ripe by now."

Krillgan squeezed his father's shoulder. He wanted to know how a body could be ripe, since it wasn't a fruit. Chitrah told him, that when any creature dies, when life has left its body, certain bio-chemicals that the body used, and kept in check, are no longer being restrained by the life force. So they start to dissolve the body on the inside. Over time the body starts to expand to its largest size, with its skin being stretched to its limit. Because gases and liquids are being released, similar to the way a fruit ripens. If you touch the body, breaking the skin, the gases and liquids will start escaping, and it smells really bad.

Krillgan was satisfied with the explanation, and looked at the Captain.

"Two Sisters went to retrieve the body, even though they did not have their Mother's permission. They knew she would understand, and would not be upset with them. The other Sister, whose hands were free, grabbed the Nightsister and forced her to her feet. The Nightsister was surprised that she was still alive, so did not resist, and went wherever the Sister led her. The parents and the animals followed. They took her to a colourful tent, pitched at the base of the trail that led from the lowland plateau, to the midland plateau, which was on average 400 meters higher in this area."

"It was on the midland plateau that the town and the Rolling Red Hills are situated. This trail was the only natural link between the lowland plateau, and the midland plateau."

"They took the Nightsister inside the tent, along with the two gourds. There was an elderly lady sitting inside on some nicely embroidered cushions. The one Sister took the two gourds to her. After sniffing the content of each of them, she directed the Sister to place them on a short table off to one side, and slightly behind her. The other Sister presented the Nightsister before her, and told her that she claims she did not want to be a Nightsister anymore. The Nightsister wondered if that is why she is still alive. She knew this woman must be a respected clan elder, she was the one who would be deciding her fate. If she was truthful and honest, they might let her live. She knew that the elders knew how to tell if you are lying. She would have to be constantly hiding, fearful that at any moment the Nightsisters would find her, and administer a horrible death. But it would be a better life than actually being a Nightsister, knowing that at some point she would not be able to take it anymore, and either take her own life, or be killed by the Nightsisters, once her true nature was revealed."

"The elder asked her to make herself comfortable, in a pile of cushions that she pointed to. She then asked the Sister to bring them both a cup of tea. The Nightsister thought she must be a very powerful force user, if the two Sisters were not afraid to leave her alone with the elder. The elder asked her to start from the beginning, and tell her how she first became a Nightsister. She told her that she used to be a Sister of the Misty Falls Clan. She started having desires to delve into the dark side of the force, which is strictly forbidden by their teaching. She found out later, that it was the one the Nightsisters call Mother, that was giving her these desires. She started going off by herself, to experiment with the dark side of the force. One time while she was experimenting, using the dark side off the force. The Nightsister's Mother walked in on her, and told her that she must be a Nightsister, because she was using the dark side off the force. The elder asked her, what exactly she was doing. When the Nightsister told her, the elder asked her, if she thought the elder was a Nightsister, because she did the same thing in her past, and will probably do it again in the near future. The Nightsister was clearly embarrassed. She told the elder, that she now knows, that four of the clans allow their Sisters to dabble in the dark side of the force. None of the Nightsisters, considers any of them to be Nightsister, so she does not believe the elder is a Nightsister. "So you know now, that you were deceived." The Nightsister bowed her head and said, "Yes." The elder asked her to continue. She said that because her clan had taught her, that you either follow the light, or you follow darkness. Light and darkness do not exist together. She thought that she had started following the darkness. So when the Nightsister Mother asked her to follow her. She did. She found that there were other Sisters like her from the Misty Falls Clan. So she felt more comfortable being there. She did not like that the older Nightsisters were kidnapping children, to force their parents to bring them all their grain. Because the children were always crying, they tried drugging them, but always ended up killing them instead. The elder asked her what the Nightsisters were giving the children. She told her that they were giving them the same stuff as is in the gourds she was supposed to give to the two parents. The elder told her that it is impossible to give this mixture to children, and expect them to live. Just one sip is potent enough to kill a child. She asked her if any of the Nightsisters objected to the way the children were treated. She said that once, one of her Sisters pleaded with the older Nightsisters, to give the children over to her care, she will make sure that they stop crying. The Mother told her not to interfere in what another Nightsister is doing, especially when it brings food to their table. She told her that it was wrong for them to kill the children. Mother became angry with her, and picked her up using the force. Somehow she had also paralyzed her, because she could not move any part of her body. Mother took her and carried her, holding her over the edge of the mountain. Three other Nightsisters approached her, and started raking her body with dark force lightning. While they did this her clothes also caught fire. She started screaming horribly from both the lightning, and because her clothes were burning. The older Nightsisters, all laughed at her screaming. It seemed to encourage them to use more lightning. They only stopped when her screaming stopped. It was not enjoyable to them anymore. Mother let go of the body, and it dropped like a flaming torch, down the side of the mountain. That night she cried herself to sleep. That Sister had been a very good friend to her, both when they were together with the Misty Falls Clan, and here she was like an anchor in the midst of the madness. Now she was gone. She had no more anchors to hold onto."

"The younger Nightsisters were also forced to entertain the older Nightsisters. One of the ways they had to entertain them, was by removing all their clothes before them. Now they were not allowed to simply take off their clothes, they had to do it as if they were trying to seduce a man."

Krillgan squeezed his father's shoulder, than stopped. He remembered that he had already tried asking his father once before. It was something he would learn about when he was older.

"At first she did not want to do it. Then she remembered from her Misty Falls training, that seduction was one of the things that Nightsisters do, and are supposed to be good at. So this was actually part of their training. So she watched carefully what the others were doing, especially if they were getting praise from the older Nightsisters. When her turn came, she tried to do what she saw the others had done."

The Captain told Andriel that she should probably cover her son's ears for this next part. He has already heard more than a boy his age should have. Krillgan did not mind his mother covering his ears so that he could not hear. It always hurt him inside, when he heard about how bad people hurt other people. He could tell by the tears in his mother's eyes, that someone else was being hurt.

"After she was completely undressed. One of the older Nightsisters, grabbed her from behind, and told her that they knew she was still a virgin, and had a special surprise for her. Other Nightsisters got up, and together they pinned her down, so that she could not move. Then two of them grabbed her knees, and forced her legs wide apart. Then Mother ordered one of the drugged husbands to have sex with her. They laughed when they saw her bleeding from her secret place. It hurt a lot, but she tried not to show it, because they would only want to hurt her more. Unfortunately, she could not stop the tears from coming to her eyes. When one of the Nightsisters noticed them, she licked them, and told the other Nightsisters that they were sweet, not salty. Which made the others laugh. When the drugged husband spent himself. They finally let her go, and told the husband to stand to one side. They would not let her put her clothes back on, for the rest of the evening. So that when they looked at her, they could relive what they had just done to her. At the end of the evening, one of the Nightsisters came up to her and whispered in her ear, "Now you are one of us." She knew in her heart that she could never be one of them."

The Captain let Andriel know that it was okay for Krillgan to listen again.


	6. Chapter 6

©2016

"One of the Sisters came into the tent. She told the elder that the parents have identified the body of the dead child they found, as their son, and the funeral pyre was ready, they were just waiting for her permission to light it. The Nightsister asked if she could have permission to go out and pay her respects to the body. The elder said she could, and followed her out. At first the parents thought of protesting her presence. But when they saw the elder right behind her. They bowed out of respect to the elder, and knew that she would have given permission for the witch to stand there. When the two parents lit the funeral pyre. The mother noticed that the witch had tears in her eyes. When her son's body was completely engulfed in flames. The witch fell down on her knees sobbing. The mother could not understand this reaction from a witch. She knelt beside her, and asked her why she was crying. She told her that when they brought him to the mountain. She saw that he seemed like a nice boy, the type of son she wanted to have, and she could not do anything to stop them. The mother than understood that this woman was a victim, just as they were, and they cried on each other's shoulders. The husband did not understand why his wife was crying with a witch, but she was a woman with a good heart, so he knew she had a good reason."

"When they returned to the tent. The Nightsister thanked the elder, she told her that this was the first time in a long time that she could cry freely, without fear of punishment, because nothing should make a Nightsister cry. She told the elder about the husbands being drugged for only one year. How if they had not been ordered to do so before. One of the last things they did before the drugs wore off, was to murder their wife. Usually by strangulation, sometimes by more bloody means, if the Nightsisters thought they had not been sufficiently entertained, recently. She told the elder that the spiral walkway was almost finished. So they really did not need any more female slaves to finish it. She thought that they may have accumulated close to two years supply of grain. The Brackaset that the families brought with them, were slaughtered right away. Some of the Nightsisters liked to drink their blood, and eat the meat raw. Whatever was not drunk, had to be carefully collected. Some of the other Nightsisters liked to bathe in the blood. They claimed it helped to make their skin more youthful. This from women who painted their face, to hide how using the dark side of the force, permanently distorted the facial features of their face. She readily answered every question that the elder asked her. The ones she did not know the answers to, she would apologise, and tell the elder she did not know. She did not know that the elder was trying to determine the depth of her knowledge of the dark side of the force. When she was satisfied, she led her outside, and gathered all the people that where there together. She told them that she is satisfied with her cross-examination of this woman, and has come to the conclusion, that she is in fact, not a Nightsister. She has been deceived, and manipulated into thinking she was one, than forced to do their bidding. The Sisters in the Singing Mountain Clan, have more knowledge of the dark side of the force than she does. None of them have anything to fear from her. What they need to fear, are the ones who will come looking for her, and what they will do to her, because she has chosen to be free of them. The elder asked the grieving parents what they were going to do now. They said that they will return to their home, and maybe they will be blessed with another child. The elder told them that they already have been, she knew for a fact that the wife was pregnant. When the husband looked at his wife, she blushed and said that she had suspected she was. The husband was jubilant. He picked his wife up and kissed her, and twirled around with her before putting her back down. Their great sorrow had been replaced with great joy."

"The elder knew she had to get to the Council of Mothers, before they all went home. The Herd Mother, along with an honour guard of Rancor were waiting at the top of the trail. The whole herd considered it a special privilege for the Herd Mother to give a ride to an elder. The Rancor she had bonded with, when she was a young Sister, has long since passed away, and it would not be right for any other Rancor to give her a ride, unless there was more than one elder needing to go somewhere. The elder had already arranged with the Herd Mother, for the two Sisters who were accompanying her back to town, to be allowed to ride two of the honour guard. Because their Rancor are waiting for them in the compound attached to the town. The other two Sisters would be escorting the now clanless Sister back to their village. They will put her up in their Mother's home, until they return from the Council of Mothers. The elder thought that it was the safest place for her for now. But they will have to find another place for her, because they know that this home will be the first one the Nightsisters will check, when they come looking for her. The elder had also used the force to contact another Sister that had come to hunt in the area. She has sent her Rancor home, and will be trailing the parents to make sure they get home safely."

"It was dusk when the elder arrived in the Singing Mountain Clan's compound. The Mother sent one of the Sisters, to get the Clan Mother of the Red Hills Clan. So she and her Sisters can hear what the elder has to say. Mother told the elder how the Clan Mother helped her delay the Council of Mothers, and gave her an opportunity to talk privately with two other Clan Mothers. The elder had tremendous respect for her Mother, and agreed to brief them both at the same time.

The Clan Mother from the Red Hills Clan, took longer in coming to them than they expected. When she found out that the Herd Mother for the Singing Mountain Clan was in the compound, she just had to go pay her respects. When the Sisters told the elder why their Clan Mother was delayed, the elder told them she had a very good reason, and was no longer upset at the delay. It also gave her time to finish her dinner."

"The next morning the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan, asked the Council to indulge her, she has brought someone to tell them what the Nightsisters are up to. She had her two Sisters open the entrance way for the elder. When the other Clan Mothers saw that it was an elder, they all stood up to show respect, except for the Clan Mother of the Frenzied River Clan, she only stood up because the others stood up. She did not like this situation at all. She knew this elder was here because of her. She knew she had to be careful. After arranging a comfortable place for her to sit, all the Clan Mothers sat back down. The elder gave them a detailed account of all that the Nightsisters have been doing, since they received permission to have the southern coastal swamp as their territory. She told them about the one they call Mother, actively recruiting Sisters from all the clans, having the greatest success with Sisters from the Misty Falls Clan. The Clan Mother of the Misty Falls Clan acknowledged, that she had lost a number of Sisters, but never knew how or why. She asked the elder if it was possible for her to talk privately with her after the meeting. She wants to know how they can combat the Nightsisters' recruiting strategy. The elder agreed. She then detailed the kidnapping strategy the Nightsisters were using. How they poisoned the children, once they brought them to their Sandstone Mountain, because they were no longer needed. Their main goals were to get their hands on the grain reserves these families have, and to permanently enslave the husbands. Their secondary goal is to enslave the wife for one year, and work her to death. If she survived the year, then her drugged husband would be ordered to murder her. The Clan Mother of the Frenzied River Clan, scoffed, "What type of drug could do that?" "This one can." The elder placed a sealed gourd in front of her. The Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan, instructed one of her Sisters to unseal the gourd, and let the other Mothers and their Sisters have a sniff of it. She cautioned her to not let the Clan Mother from the Frenzied River Clan take it from her, or cause its contents to be spilled out. Most of the Clan Mothers and their Sisters recognised the smell of many of the ingredients. Most of them also knew that when combined with the use of the dark side of the force, it could produce the effect on adults that the elder described, and would be deadly to children. The only one that did not take a sniff of the gourd's contents was the Clan Mother from the Frenzied River Clan. Though she did not stop her Sisters from having a sniff. Instead she challenged the elder. "How do we know that you did not just mix this up yourself, and bring it here? Claiming that it came from the Nightsisters." "Because I am an elder." "What is that supposed to mean?" The elder looked at her Mother and asked, "Is this person really a Clan Mother? She seems far too ignorant for someone who holds that position." The other Clan Mothers recognised that this insult from the elder was well deserved, she was too close to insulting a clan elder, which was considered a cardinal sin. The Clan Mother of the Frenzied River Clan, was red in the face, both from embarrassment, and from anger. The elder turned her attention back to the Frenzied River Clan's Mother. She reminded her that under clan law if the Clan Mother gives evidence, she requires someone to back her up. But when an elder gives evidence, it is accepted that she is backing up her own word. She does not require someone else to back her up. The Clan Mother of the Frenzied River Clan, said under her breath, that if she was worthy she would challenge her to a duel. Unfortunately for the Clan Mother of the Frenzied River Clan, it was very quiet in the room at that moment, so everyone heard what she said. The elder simply said, "I accept the challenge." "What challenge?" "You said that if I was worthy, you would challenge me to a duel. I am an elder that automatically makes me worthy. It also means by clan law, that by insulting me, you have insulted every elder in every clan, including your own. That means that every elder is free to accept your challenge." "I'm sorry, but you misunderstood me. I did not issue a challenge." The Clan Mother of the Red Hills Clan, spoke up, "We all heard the challenge." The other Clan Mothers also confirmed that they heard it. The Clan Mother of the Frenzied River Clan, was afraid, and started to panic. She had heard that there is an elder of the Singing Mountain Clan, who is considered the most powerful force user on all of Dathomir. If this is her, and they duel, she is dead. She got to her feet, she told them all that they misunderstood what she said. Then she told her Sisters, that they were leaving, and she left. The elder motioned to one of the Frenzied River Clan Sisters, to approach her. The Sister came over. The elder asked her to make sure the elders of her clan know that their Clan Mother insulted an elder. She promised her that she would let them know. In fact she promised herself that she was going to let her whole clan know. She was somewhat disappointed that the elder did not go after her and force a duel as soon as they left the town's neutral territory. Unfortunately that would be undignified for an elder. It did mean that her Clan Mother would have to be very careful where she went. Any elder, including the ones in her own clan, could easily accept her challenge and defeat her.

After she left. The Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan, told the other Clan Mothers, that she was going to barricade the only natural trail from the midland plateau to the lowland plateau. It would not hinder the Nightsisters' movements. Because they could easily scale the cliffs. But she could stop clanless families from being completely destroyed. They knew she was not asking their permission, she was just informing them. But they were grateful that she told them. They also told her that they thought it was a good idea. The Clan Mother of the Great Canyon Clan, told her that she was willing to ship her some stone blocks, if she was thinking of constructing a permanent gateway. The Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan, hadn't thought that far in advance. She liked the idea of doing something permanent. With the other clans help, it would make construction that much faster. It would also show the Nightsisters, that other clans were supporting them. She agreed and thanked the Clan Mother of the Great Canyon Clan. The Clan Mother of the Misty Falls Clan, also volunteered some stone blocks which were accepted.

The Mothers started getting ready to leave, except the Clan Mother of the Misty Falls Clan. She was thinking of dismissing her Sisters, because she felt that she would be doing some arguing with the elder. This got all the other Clan Mothers attention. They asked permission for their Sisters to stay and observe, because it was not very often that they can see two adults talking when there is a healthy disagreement. The Clan Mother of the Misty Falls Clan, thought about it for a few minutes, and agreed, this would be a good learning opportunity for the Sisters. It would also force her to be more careful about what she said. The elder had no objections. Instead of sending her Sisters away, she sent them to make sure there were adequate refreshments for everyone, she was expecting it to be a long session. But if it kept her from losing anymore of her Sisters to the Nightsisters, it will be worth it."

"The Clan Mother of the Frenzied River Clan, was surprised to see her own mother waiting for her in her own home. But instead of greeting her, she slapped her in the face. "That is from all of us elders. How dare you insult an elder? Do you know how fortunate you are, to still be alive?" This was quite a shock to the Clan Mother. Her mother had never struck her before in all her life. So there was more than just the physical sting in that slap. "The whole clan is in turmoil, there is even talk of some leaving the clan altogether." "Are they all planning on becoming Nightsisters?" "The only one that I have seen in this clan that looks like a Nightsister, is the woman standing before me." "Is that anyway to talk to your Clan Mother?" "No its not. But it is the only way I know of talking with my daughter, when I think she has made some big mistakes." The Clan Mother looked away from her mother. She knows her mother thinks she is being helpful, but she is not. For the Frenzied River Clan to be strong. The Singing Mountain Clan needs to become weak. Why can no-one else in her clan see this? They should all be grateful, that the Nightsisters, would be doing all the dirty work for them. With a weakened Singing Mountain Clan, the Frenzied River Clan would have no problem absorbing all the other clans. Then there would be no more fighting between Sisters."

"The elder introduced her Mother to her house guest. They talked candidly well into the night. The clanless Sister understood that no clan would be willing to accept her, and it would be even harder to protect her. There is only one way for her to live a peaceful life, without fear of discovery by the Nightsisters. It would also mean that she would not have any contact with any human. So she would not know what a real relationship with a good man is. She would not be completely alone, the elder was sure the Kwi would accept her and look after her. They are supper sensitive to dark force users, and would never allow one to get near her. The Sister asked the elder how long she would need to live with the Kwi. The elder told her that at the very least she could not return, until all the current Nightsisters are dead. To be safe she should plan on living with them for 100 years. If she returns as an elder, she would be readily accepted, and no one would dare look into her past. The elder had shared with her the time she spent with the Kwi. She was surprised by how much she learnt from them, and how safe she felt with them. She asked the Clan Mother, if she would agree to send someone to her, when all the current Nightsisters were dead. The Clan Mother promised that if she was not able to, the elder would make sure that the next Clan Mother would. The Sister smiled, she did expect that if she did return as an elder, this elder would still be here to greet her. She left the next morning with two Sisters who volunteered to go with her into the Great Desert, the elder had given them some suggestions about where the Kwi might be. But when they found them, she must approach them on her own. When the two Sisters returned, they reported to their Mother and the elder, that it was the Kwi who had found them. It was like they were expecting her."

"It was not long after this, that a young boy found their village. He was weak, malnourished, and hallucinating. After carefully feeding him, restoring his strength. He told them his story. He is from the independent settlement on the lowlands. It is near the east trail that goes from the lowlands to the southern coastal swamp. One night the Nightsisters raided their settlement, and took most of their children. His mother was able to hide him, but not his sister. After they left, she sent him to find the Swinging Mountain Clan. She told him that when he reaches the midland, to follow the stream to its source in the highland. There he would find the Singing Mountain Clan. He asked for their help to find the Singing Mountain Clan. The Clan Mother told him that she is the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan. He fell at her feet and hugged her legs. "Please help us. They say that we are now their property, and must do as they say, or they will hurt the children. They are his friends, he played with them every day. They also have his little sister, she's a real nice girl most of the time. They would really like her if they met her." The hearts of everyone on the village melted. They all wanted to go down and put the Nightsisters in their place. Which to everyone on the Singing Mountain Clan, was a watery grave. The Clan Mother had to restrain them, she told them that without the Council of Mothers' full support. They would have to fight against all the other clans if they went against the Nightsisters. That meant that they would be fighting against friends and allies. They asked her what they need to do. She told them that she needs to send runners to all the clans for an emergency Council of Mothers. Then this young man can make his plea there, on behalf of his people. "Hopefully they will see reason, and remove the restraints they have placed on us so far.""

"Things did not go well in the Council of Mothers. When they found out that they had come to hear the plea of a clanless boy. The Clan Mother of the Frenzied River Clan, became angry and ordered her Sisters to throw the child out. The Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan became furious and used the force to push the Sisters away from the boy. Something that is forbidden in the Council. The Clan Mother of the Frenzied River Clan tried to get the other Clan Mothers to impose some sort of punishment on the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan, but the other Clan Mothers said she was justified in this case, because it was in fact the Clan Mother of the Frenzied River Clan that had violated the Council meeting, by ordering something not sanctioned by the Council. So the boy made his plea, with the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan standing over him, ready to protect him. After he finished, she had one of her Sisters take him out of the Council meeting, and sit with him, until the issue was resolved. She then addressed the other Mothers, "If pirates or slavers had attacked the settlement, and stayed to use it as a base of operation. I would not have need to come before the Council of Mothers, to ask permission to rid the planet of them, once the child's plea and that of all the families he represents, came to me. But one of the members of this Council has chosen to protect the Nightsisters. When they have shown themselves, time and again, to be worse than pirates and slavers. So now I ask that this Council give me permission, to rescue the children, and free the settlement from slavery." All the Clan Mothers, except the Clan Mother of the Frenzied River Clan, agreed to support the Singing Mountain Clan. When asked why she would not support them. The Clan Mother of the Frenzied River Clan, said that she could not support any action against the Nightsisters, in support of a clanless settlement. That would just encourage more families to leave the clans, and set up settlements wherever they wanted, within the clans' territories. The Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan stood up. "What sort of heartless person are you. None of the Clan Mothers, throughout the history of the clans, has ever turned a human being away, when they came and pleaded for help, regardless of whether they were members of their own clan. How is this different?" The Clan Mother of the Frenzied River Clan remained silent. The other Clan Mothers had never seen the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan so angry before. "You disgust me. You are not worthy to be called a Clan Mother. I challenge you to a duel." The Clan Mother of the Frenzied River Clan, was terrified of this woman staring at her. She refused the challenge. This shocked the other Clan Mothers more than the challenge. The Clan Mother of the Frenzied River Clan, had just declared to the world, that she is a coward. "Then remove yourself from this place. For your presence is loathsome. I will promise you this. The next time I see you, I will grab you by your hair, and drag you outside of the town's territory and kill you." The Clan Mother of the Frenzied River Clan, could not move fast enough to get out of there. The Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan had just given the Clan Mother of the Frenzied River Clan, the worst insult that one Clan Mother could give to another. The Frenzied River Clan has just been given notice that they must find a new Clan Mother, or give up the right of being called a clan. Which means that they have no right to try and defend their territory, from any of the clans."

"When the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan left the meeting, she took a couple of steps, then fell to her knees and started sobbing. The little boy got up from where he was sitting, he went up to her and put his arms around her. He asked not to cry. "But they won't let me save your people." "But you fought for us. You fought really hard. You made that bad lady run away. Maybe next time you ask, they will let you." "I cannot ask them again. What is done, cannot be undone." The little boy looked down at his feet. Then he started to cry. The Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan hugged him to herself, and they cried together. The other Clan Mothers, when they left the meeting, and saw the two people crying, were ashamed of themselves. They felt they should have done more. They should have disciplined the Clan Mother of the Frenzied River Clan when she threw that poor lady out, when she asked for their help concerning her kidnapped son. Things may have turned out different this time. They sighed and moved on. What is done cannot be undone."

"The one Sister of the Frenzied River Clan, raced ahead of her coward for a Clan Mother, and her other Sister. She wanted to make sure everyone heard what happened in the Council meeting. She wanted to see what the elders would do. Because if they did nothing, again, then she would do something."

"When the Clan Mother did arrive, she dismounted from her Rancor, and sent him to the den area. Everywhere she looked, the people where turning their backs to her. They did not understand. It would have been suicide to accept the challenge, then they could have removed her block, because there would have been no-one to say no to the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain. Then the Nightsisters would be no more. There would be no-one to keep the Singing Mountain Clan in check. She had to play the coward. The elders will understand once she explains it to them. Her mother will bring the people around, and she will be Clan Mother again. Then she will have to train really hard, so she can face the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan. Then they will see who will drag who by the hair, to the edge of the town's territory."

"When the Sister saw that the elders did nothing, she told the other Sister that had been at the meeting, to tell the elders she was leaving. Word spread through the whole clan that this Sister was leaving. As she was packing, other Sisters and family members, asked her if they can go with her. She told them that they could, but they must bring adequate supplies, because they do not want to show up on the doorstep begging. A full one third of the village choose to follow this Sister."

"One of the elders came to her to plead with her not to do this, not to divide the clan. She told the elder that there is no clan. She is not the one doing this, they are. They are the ones who refused to act when the Clan Mother insulted the elder. Now innocent families are slaves because of them. She can never forgive them for that. The elder left her, ashamed and embarrassed, her words stung, because they were true. She went to speak to the other elders. When the Sister was sure everyone was ready, she took the other Sisters that were coming with her, to go talk to the Herd Mother. She asked her permission for their Rancor to come with them, at least until they find a place to stay, because she does not want to leave the people unprotected as they move. The Herd Mother asked them how much food they were taking with them. She told her that the people coming with her said that they could not carry more than three months' supply of food, and that is only if some Rancor come with them. The Herd Mother asked her where she was planning on going. She told her that she wanted to go to the Clan Mother that she respects the most. The one that has proven over and over again, that she cares for her clan, and she cares for all the people, and she cares for all Rancor. The Herd Mother told her that it would not be fair to the Rancor they bonded with, to be sent back to her herd without their Sisters. If this Clan Mother is as good as she says, then she must also have a good Herd Mother with her. It would be better for her children that go with them, to stay with them, and seek acceptance in that herd. The Sister was surprised, but understood why the Herd Mother was saying this. She asked the Herd Mother, that if the humans are allowed to come back and visit family, would her children be allowed to come visit her? Even though they would be members of a different herd. The Herd Mother thought for a long time about this one. She said that this has never happened before. She believes that she would always know the scent of her children. She could see it being possible, for the first year or two. But the scent will fade as the memory will fade. It might be dangerous to come back, after that time. All of the herd was listening to this exchange, they understood what their Mother was telling them. The female Rancor that were bonded to Sisters that were leaving, took their infants with them. The male Rancor that were going would help guard them. It turned out that a full quarter of the herd was going. None of the Sisters rode their Rancor, in case one of them needed to carry an infant. The only Sister that did ride a Rancor, was the one that was sent as a runner to the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan."

"The elders of the Frenzied River Clan, deliberated long into the night, wondering what they should do. The best candidate for Clan Mother was walking away, because they did not act when they should have. The mother of the disgraced Clan Mother took it harder than the rest. She was the one who dissuaded the other elders from acting when they should have. Those people are slaves, because she choose her daughter over her clan. Now they had to decide which one of the Sisters that remain, is best suited to be Clan Mother. None of the candidates they discussed were good choices, and they are the best ones of all the Sisters that remain. They narrowed it down to three possible, and five maybe. They called it a night, because they needed their rest. They knew that tomorrow was going to be a long day. They did not go to their homes, they just slept where they were."

"They were awaken the next morning by the kitchen workers. They brought them breakfast, because they thought they would be too busy to join everyone else. While they ate their breakfast, they called four Sisters to bring the disgraced Clan Mother to them. When she appeared they asked her to explain herself to them, starting with her being the driving force behind the Nightsisters getting a piece of the Singing Mountain Clan's territory. She explained her strategy to weaken the Singing Mountain Clan. So that they could not help their allies, the Red Hills Clan, when it came time to absorb them. Her mother could not believe that she was using such nice words to describe armed conflict. Sister against Sister. Clan against Clan. She wanted to conquer all the Clan's north of the town, and keep the Singing Mountain Clan occupied, so they could not interfere. When she finished talking, her mother accused her of wanting to make herself Queen. She told her mother that she would not have been opposed to the people calling her that. She would have settled for Clan Mother of the Four Clans. Her mother commented, that if only her other daughter had not had that accident, she would have made an excellent Clan Mother. Then she looked at her daughter, and asked if she had anything to do with her Sister's accident? When she did not answer. The mother went pale, and asked permission to leave. One of the elders had one of the Sisters to go with her, in case she tried to harm herself."

"The elders made the disgraced Clan Mother disrobe from her elegant clothing. In its place they gave her a simple tunic. They gave her a wooden fighting stick, and nothing else. They told her that she must go to the desert for two years to meditate on her own cowardice, and how she disgraced and divided the clan. After she came back they would hear the results of her meditations, and decide at that time whether she would be welcomed back as a Sister of the clan. She will never be allowed to be Clan Mother again. She asked for permission to say goodbye to her Rancor. Her request was denied, and four Sisters escorted her out of the village, and shut the gate behind her.

The elders asked that her mother be brought back to them. It was obvious that she had been crying. They told her that they need her. She needs to be strong for the clan. What has been done cannot be undone. They decided to call the five candidates to speak with them individually. They would give them the names of the four other candidates, and asked them which of the four they thought would be the best Sister to become Clan Mother, and why? They would make their final decision based on their answers."

"When the runner came to the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan, with the request for the people that were once part of the Frenzied River Clan, to become her people. She told the runner, that for now the answer must be No. Their wounds are too fresh, and their sorrow too great, from what happened. She asks that they wait at the clan compounds at the town. She will ask permission of the other Clan Mothers that their compounds would also be open to them. She would like them to see if they can reconcile with their old clan. Once a new Clan Mother is chosen. If they cannot reconcile, then she will hear their petition to be members of her clan, and their Rancor to be members her herd. The runner liked her response, no wonder the Sister wants to be part of her clan. She accepted provisions and ran back to report to her Sister."

"The Clan Mother sent runners to the other three clans to get permission to use their compounds. After they left the Clan Mother and her elders sat with their Herd Mother, to discuss the situation of the settlement that has been enslaved, and how to prevent the Council from denying aid, to anyone else who seeks their intervention. They felt that once the New Clan Mother was chosen for the Frenzied River Clan, they could force an agreement amongst the Clan Mothers, that the Nightsisters must restore the children to their families, or face the wrath of the Council. The other thing that they came up with, was that every settlement must be approached. If they gave a token tribute to any clan of their choosing, if something happened to them, than that clan would be obligated to help them, and the Council could not deny that clan its support. With that, the elders departed and left the two Mothers to discuss the best way to absorb the people and Rancor that could soon be coming their way. The Clan Mother said that they would need to expand soon, anyway. They should consider building another village. They talked about how to protect it. How many Rancor they should keep there, and how often they would need to replace the Rancor, so that they know that they are still part of the herd. They both knew that until the new Rancor were fully assimilated into the herd, they could not send Rancor to the new village. So Sisters in Rancor hide armour would have to protect the village. The Clan Mother went over the plans for the new village with the Sisters, so that everyone understood what was required to build it. The Mother left one of the Sisters in charge of the project. Then left for their compound at the town. She did not want the people who had left the Frenzied River Clan to feel like unwanted orphans while they were there."

"When the runners returned to her with permission to use the other compounds, she sent them back to the Clan Mothers they just came from, to explain the strategy they had come up with, to ensure that all people were protected by the clans. The Clan Mothers would be responsible to reaching out to settlements in their own territory. When the refugees reached the town and settled into the compounds, they were impressed to find the lady they hoped would be their new Clan Mother was there to greet them, and help them settle into the compounds. Even though she had turned down their initial request. She dispatched some of their Sisters to return to their old territory, to talk with the settlements there, about getting clan protection. The Sisters were delighted to do it, since they knew all the people in those settlements, and had worried about their safety, after what their former Clan Mother had done. They were also confident that their fellow Sisters would not challenge them, but might share some information about what is happening with their former clan. When a runner arrived in town from the Frenzied River Clan, she was surprised to find the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan there. She told her the news, that the elders of the Frenzied River Clan had appointed a new Clan Mother. The Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan told her to tell her new Mother, that she was invited to come to the town, with their elders, to hold talks with the refugees about a possible reconciliation. The runner promised to let her Mother know right away. When the new Clan Mother and the elders arrived in their compound (the only one not being used by the refugees) they noticed that the Clan Mother for the Singing Mountain Clan was not there like the runner said she was. The Sister leading the refugees told them that she has gone to visit the Red Hills Clan, so that no one would think she was meddling, and that they could all talk freely. The elders were impressed, this Clan Mother was living up to her reputation."

"The Clan Mother of the Red Hills Clan, sent a Sister to keep an eye on the town. As soon as she saw the new Clan Mother and her elders leave the town, she was to return to the village. The villagers liked having the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan as their guest. The children especially liked that she told good stories right after dinner, before they had to go to bed. The adults liked the stories too. The Sisters liked to talk to her about using the force. They found that the Singing Mountain Clan had a slightly different way of using the force but would get the same, or similar results. It help them look at the force a different way. There was the potential of learning new, and unexpected things in relationship to the force. The two Clan Mothers, and the Herd Mother talked a lot during the day, and any Sister or elder that wanted to, was allowed to listen in. Before she left to return to town, the Sisters were rushing through their chores for the day, just so that they could listen in on the talks. When the Sister returned to inform them that the talks were over. The Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan decided to return to town right away. As she was saying good bye to the people of the village, some of the small children asked their parents if they could give this nice lady a kiss goodbye, because they had seen some of the Sisters do it. Their parents told them that they should ask her. They all ran up to her and gently tugged on her skirt to get her attention. She squatted down and asked them how she could help them. They said that they wanted to give her a kiss goodbye like their Sisters did. She told them to go ahead. They all took their turn, and by the time the last one kissed her, the little girl had to wipe the tears off of her cheek, so that she had a dry spot to kiss her."

"When she returned to the town compound she found the Sisters inside waiting for her. As soon as she entered, the Sisters all fell on their knees and bowed before her, asking for permission to be part of her clan. She told them that she accepts them into her clan, but the Sisters need to accept them as Sisters. After she had them stand up, two of the Sisters led her outside to the people, who did the same thing their Sisters had done, even the children. The Clan Mother told them that she accepts them all into her clan. Then she told them that they need to get up and get ready, because they are leaving first thing in the morning, right after everyone has had their breakfast."

"She never asked them how their talks went, until after they had gone through the bonding ceremony with all the other Sisters of the Singing Mountain Clan. Even then the Sisters knew that it was informal, and they were under no obligation to talk. Most of the Sisters did talk to her about it, because they did not want to hide anything from their Mother, and because they were now comfortable to talk with her about anything. The others came around and talked with her in private, because they were still hurting, and needed her help to find healing. The Clan Mother had gone ahead of them to the village that was being built, so that she could send them some Sisters. Who would show them the best places to camp for the night, and where the sources for fresh water were. She also admitted she had been away for too long. There was probably a pile of work waiting for her attention."

"When she did get back, one of the Sisters informed her that the mother of the little boy, approached one of their patrols, and told them that her son had seen the bad lady with some Nightsisters. The Clan Mother decided to send a runner to the new Clan Mother of the Frenzied River Clan, to inform her, of her former Clan Mother's whereabouts. And to suggest that she call a Council of Mothers, to introduce herself, and so that they can discuss what to do about the enslaved settlement."

"The new clan members were first led to the new village. They were told that only some of them would be given permission to live there. But if they all lived there, they might not feel that they are part of this clan. This new village was intended to be mainly a farming village, so craftsmen would not be given permission to live there. The Clan Mother promised that there would be enough room for them, in the main village. They had them stop there to rest, and to give anyone interested, the opportunity to check out the new village, and meet the families that were already living there. When they arrived at the main village, everyone from the main village was outside the village ready to greet them. The people were waiting in groups according to their trades, so that the new clan members could meet the people of the same trades, and be given a tour of the village. The herd and the Sisters were also waiting outside the village, off to one side. Before the Sisters were introduced to one another, the primary responsibility was to make sure that all the Rancor were safe, to see if they would be accepted into the herd."

"The new Rancor approached the Herd Mother, one at a time, accompanied by the Sister they were bonded to. They each asked permission to be accepted into her herd. All the female Rancor of the herd were with their Herd Mother. The male Rancor were with the infants in the den. They kept them running around by having them ask simple questions of another male Rancor on the far side of the den. The idea was to keep them running until they tired, and lay down, and fell asleep. The Rancor with the Herd Mother had the authority to tell the Herd Mother that they did not want this Rancor to be part of the herd. Fortunately none of them exercised that authority. The female Rancor that approached the Herd Mother also brought their infants with them. The most common question the Herd Mother would ask the Sister, was why they chose the name that they did, for the Rancor they were bonded to. This gave the Herd Mother an insight into the personality of the Rancor. After all the Rancor had been presented, and none of the females rejected them, the Herd Mother told them that she will accept them into her herd, and that they will have an acceptance ceremony later that day in the den area. Because she has stated that she would accept them, they had no fear of being attacked by her Rancor. When that was done, the Clan Mother spoke to her Sisters. She told them that she has accepted these women as members of her clan. It was up to them, whether or not, they should be accepted as Sisters. She had her Sisters be seated on the grass, and had each woman who had been a Sister in her former clan, come forward one at a time, and introduce themselves, indicating what area of the force they were strongest in. There was one healer in the group. A couple said they were runners and warriors. The rest just said they were warriors. None of them mentioned stealth. Maybe they did not check for stealth in the Frenzied River Clan, she would have to ask them later. The Sisters that had escorted the new clan members to the village, had also been asked to say something about the woman, good or bad, that they had noticed during their time with them. After the woman was presented, any Sister was allowed to ask any question of them. The most common question, was what relationship they had with the men in their group, and if they had any children. If they did have children and were asked about them, they were usually invited to call their children and present them to the Sisters. If they were married, they were asked to present their husbands. That way none of the Sisters would flirt with the man, only to find out he was married."

Krillgan squeezed his father's shoulder. He wanted to know what flirting meant. Chitrah told him that it was a way that men and women communicate to each other, that they find the other person interesting. It is often the first step for teenagers and adults, in establishing a relationship.

"Is this something I will understand when I am older?"

"I hope so."

Krillgan did not like that answer. He was hoping that his father was going to say yes. Why do adults have to be so complicated?

"The Clan Mother liked the way the presentations were going. She did not foresee any problems in the women being accepted as Sisters of the Singing Mountain Clan. When it came time to the acceptance ceremony, only Sisters who had bonded with a Rancor were allowed to attend. The thing to remember about Rancor, is that their sense of smell is the strongest of their senses. This is how they can tell who is a member of their herd and who is not. So for the new Rancor to be accepted as part of the herd, they need to get the scent of a herd member on their body. The only way they knew how to do this, was to have a herd member have sex with the Rancor that wanted to be herd member."

Krillgan squeezed his father's shoulder. "Isn't sex something that humans do?" "All animal species have sex in one form or another, for most of them there is some pleasure in the experience."

"But who teaches them about sex, because you said I am still too young to learn."

"For many it is something they know to do by instinct, when their bodies have matured to a certain point. Quite often it is triggered by the chemicals their bodies release at certain points in their life."

"Do humans have these chemical triggers?"

"They do, but they are not as strong. There are other things that affect humans, including social considerations, because we are more complex then animals. We need these social considerations, to make sure we raise strong healthy children. Because what should be a good thing for everyone, can be made into a bad thing by some."

"Is that why you have to teach me about sex, so I don't make it a bad thing."

Chitrah gave his son a hug. "We want you to grew up and enjoy all the good things in your life."

Krillgan let the Captain know he could continue.

"All Rancor know, that a female in a herd, will only have sex with a male from her herd. So the Herd Mother had paired up a new herd member with an old herd member, so that they would both have the others scent. That way everyone in the herd will smell them both at the same time, and learn to accept the new scent as belonging to a herd member. While the adult Rancor had sex. All the new infants were brought to the herd Mother, she picked up each one, and hugged it and rubbed it against her body. She did this with each infant, and repeated doing it while the adults had sex. For the next month, all female Rancor's were instructed to pick up any infant that wandered near them, to hug them and rub them against their bodies. During the next month, no adult Rancor was allowed to leave the herd on its own. The Herd Mother always made sure that a new herd member was always teamed up with an old herd member, and they had to be back by nightfall. This meant that a new Sister would be riding with an old Sister, when they went out hunting. There were more teams of hunters out riding together, than what was normal for the herd. That meant more food for the whole clan, which meant that every night was a feast night. They tried keeping the families that were now assigned to the new village, in the main village for the month. So that they too could share in the festivities. But a number of adults had to get a ride with a Sister in the morning to the new village, than back again that evening. This was a special time for them, because most of them had never ridden on a Rancor before. They often asked if they could bring a child along for the ride, so that they could share the experience. All the females of the herd were also encouraged to have sex with the males of the herd more frequently that month, then they normally would. Which made that month more festive."

Krillgan asked the Captain, if the humans also had more sex that month, because it was more festive? Andriel had to put a hand over her mouth to keep from laughing. Chitrah reached out and squeezed her other hand.

"The Sisters did not say. But I imagine that there would have been."

Krillgan was confident that he would figure out this sex thing soon enough.

"The night after the Rancor's acceptance ceremony, the Clan Mother called for a special bonding ceremony. She told her Sisters that they were each allowed to invite only one candidate from the women, who they thought, would make a good Sister for the clan, so that they could bond with them tonight. Some of the women were at first disappointed when their friend was invited and they were not, because the Sister could only invite one of them. There was great rejoicing at the bonding ceremony that evening, when they all found out that none of them were excluded. Many of the Sisters thought it was the most touching ceremony they had been to in their life. There was a lot of hugging, and crying, and laughing, and kissing." Then the Captain looked right at Krillgan. "But no sex!" Krillgan smiled. The parents were secretly relieved.

"During that month of celebration, word came that a Council of Mothers had been called by the new Clan Mother. The Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan left for town right away. Along with the two Sisters she normally took with her, she invited two of the new Sisters to join them. This way they could all get to know one another better, and she would have the time to find out if the Frenzied River Clan tests their Sisters for stealth. When the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan, entered her compound, she found so many tributes, from so many settlements, none of which she knew existed. She found a member of the town, and they took her to see the book they started. In it they recorded the name of the person representing the settlement. The name they called their settlement. Whose territory they were in. The tribute they gave, and who they gave it to. The Clan Mother asked them if they would be willing to read it out loud in the Council of Mothers, when asked to do so. They told her it would be their pleasure. At the Council, once the new Clan Mother introduced herself. The meeting went pretty much as expected. The Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan, pushed for permission to totally annihilate the Nightsisters. The Clan Mother of the Red Hills Clan, suggested that they send an envoy demanding that the children be surrendered back to their families, or face the wrath of the Council of Mothers, which would be them giving permission to the Singing Mountain Clan to annihilate them. The other Clan Mothers were much more willing to accept the proposal from the Red Hills Clan, since it did not violate any agreements that had been made previously, and it represented a much more peaceful solution. With all the other Mothers supporting it they were able to persuade the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan, to also support it. Just like the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan, and the Clan Mother of the Red Hills Clan, had discussed with the Herd Mother of the Red Hills Clan, when she was visiting them earlier."

"The Council decided to send the Clan Mother of the Great Canyon Clan, and her Sisters, because they would seem the most neutral to the Nightsisters. When the new Clan Mother asked if there was anything else that needed their attention (since having called the meeting, she was in charge of the agenda). The Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan, said there was one more thing that they needed to discuss. She told them that she found out upon her arrival, that settlements had already started paying tribute to a Clan Mother, and the people of the town have been recording this as the witness. None of the other Mothers had heard about this, and were interested in knowing which settlements had paid tribute, and to who. The Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan sent one of her Sisters to go get the man that has been patiently waiting, with the town's book. He came in and started reading each entry. Every time he mentioned what the tribute was, one of the Sisters placed it in front of her Mother. They were all fistfuls of grain in an embroidered clothe, with the emblem of the settlement on it. One of the Mothers asked the town's representative, if he knew why they had all paid tribute to the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan, and not to anyone else. He said he did, and all of them said the same thing. When the mother of the kidnapped child pleaded with the council for help. She was instead thrown out. The Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan, was the only one to reach out to her, and offer assistance. Even though she did not know her, nor whose territory she lived in. They all felt confident that she would be just as willing to help them. The Clan Mothers all felt embarrassed by the incident, especially the new Clan Mother since it was her former Clan Mother that had thrown the poor woman out. She asked the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan what they needed to discuss, since she had received the tribute from every known settlement. She told the Council that she feels obligated to send Sisters from her clan to visit every settlement, to thank them for their tribute. Since none of them are in her own territory, her Sisters would have to encroach on another clan's territory. She would like permission from all the clans for her Sisters to do so without being challenged. They can stay and discuss it, while they await the return of the Clan Mother from the Great Canyon Clan. That way everyone can hear her report on her meeting with the Nightsisters. While they discussed how her Sisters can enter their territory without them taking offence. The new Clan Mother glanced around at the other Mothers. Everyone was in agreement with the proposal from the Singing Mountain Clan. So the Clan Mother from the Great Canyon Clan went with her Sisters to Confront the Nightsisters."

"When the disgraced Clan Mother of the Frenzied River Clan showed up at the Sandstone Mountain. The Nightsister Mother knew it was only a matter of time, before the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan figured out some way to come for the children. She was sure that even without her ally on the Council, the other Mothers would restrain her from open war. After all, is that not the purpose of the Council? So now they had to try and determine what the Clan Mother's options might be, and how best to counter them. They figured to save face, the Council would settle for most of them, not all of them. But who to keep, and how best to make them stay. She decided that if they kept the youngest child, they would still have enough leverage over the settlement. As well as the threat to take the other children away again. To make sure the little girl stayed under her control, she separated her from the other children. Then she ordered the woman in charge of the kitchen, to their main room for a demonstration. All the children loved this woman, because she fed them, and from time to time she made treats for them, even though she had already been beaten once for that. Other than the Nightsisters, the only other person there, was the little girl. The Mother told the little girl that this woman upset her, and must be punished. The little girl asked her what she did wrong. She told the little girl that she did nothing wrong, but that wasn't important. What was important was that she was upset, so this woman must be punished. She signalled the Nightsister standing behind her, who grabbed the back of the woman's blouse. She ripped and tore the blouse off of her body. Then two other Nightsisters turned her around, so her back was to the little girl, and fastened her hands up to the rings that where there specifically for this purpose. Another Nightsister had a leafless green branch, and started whipping her bare back, over and over again. Another Nightsister held the little girl, so she could not turn her head away. It wasn't long before little trickles of blood started to appear on her back. The Mother squatted down so that she was close to the little girl's level. "Soon people will come and take the other children away. But I do not want you to go with them, because if you do, then I will be upset with your mother. Then I will have to do this to her." She asked the girl, if she wanted her to do this to her mother? The little girl said no, because she wasn't allowed to look away. The whipping stopped when the branch finally broke. Throughout the ordeal, the woman did not cry. She tried not to make any sounds, but could not help herself, every time the green branch whipped her back. When they loosened her hands. The woman almost stumbled and fell, but was somehow able to keep her balance. She carefully bent over and picked up her blouse that was just lying on the floor. The Mother told the little girl to go with the woman. "She will be looking after you from now on." The woman was walking like her knees wanted to give out on her at any moment. When the little girl caught up with her, she touched her skirt because she was afraid to touch her anywhere else, in case she hurt her. Surprisingly the woman felt the child's touch, and stopped. She looked down at the little girl who still had tears falling down her face. She gently cupped her face with her hand, and brushed the tears aside with her thumb. She told her not to cry for her, because she had stopped crying long ago. The little girl saw that her eyes glistened, but there were no tears on her face. She told the woman that she was told she had to go with her. The woman went back to her strained walking, but she held out her hand for the little girl to hold. When they reached the kitchen. The woman strained for a container that contained a whipped animal fat, water emulsion. She put a scoop of it in a bowl, and put the container back. She then went and selected some fresh herbs. Some of which the Nightsisters did not know were in the kitchen. She chopped the herbs up real fine. She put the chopped herbs in a mortar, and crushed them together until they made a paste. She scraped the paste into the bowl, and mixed it with the fat, water emulsion. She then grabbed a bag of coarse cloth that they had used to put the dead bodies of the kidnapped children in. She handed the bag to the little girl to carry, grabbed the bowl, and made her way to her room. She lit a small lamp then closed the curtain over her doorway. None of the slaves' rooms had doors on them. She took the bag from the little girl, placing it on the end of her bed. She placed the bowl on the bag, then lifted the little girl onto the bed, and handed her the bowl. She asked her to spread the mixture onto the wounds on her back, and not to be surprised if her fingers start going numb, it means the mixture is working. It helps to take away the pain. While the little girl applied the mixture to her back, the woman started unraveling a thread from the bag. The bag looked like this was done before. When the woman felt she had a long enough piece, she took out a bone needle, and started to repair her blouse. The little girl noticed there were a lot of scars on her back, and asked the woman about them. She told her that the last time she was beaten was because she made sweets for the children. Now she made them some sweets just the other day, and these were old scars. She told the woman that. The woman told her they only beat her once for making them sweets. That was the first time she made them. The little girl wanted to cry again, because she made sweets for them quite often. She risked being beaten each time she made them. She is a very brave woman. After she finished repairing her blouse, she put it back on again. The little girl noticed that it was almost as scared as the woman's back. The woman blew the candle out, and lay down on her side with her back almost touching the wall. She asked the girl to lay down in front of her with her back to her. There was barely enough room for the two of them on the bed. When she laid down the woman put her arm around her holding the little girl to herself. The little girl felt safe. The woman started to cry, not for herself, but for the little girl.

"Over the next few days, the Nightsister's Mother started to coach the little girl on what she was to say when someone showed up to take the other children away. When the little girl asked the woman that looked after her, what she should call her? She told her that it was best if she only called her mother, that's what the other slaves call her. She witnessed other slaves being beaten, just because, and they all cried. None of them were as strong as mother. She would try to help each one get to the kitchen. Some of them only made it a few steps, and fell. They were too weak to get up. She had to run to the kitchen to get mother to come and pick the woman up. The Nightsisters ignored them, it was like they weren't there. She would spread mother's mixture on their back, while mother mended their clothes. After they were dressed again. Mother would sit beside them and hold both their hands in hers. They would lean against mother, and cry on her shoulder. The little girl would stroke the hair on the top of their head. The only place she could touch them without hurting them."

"When the Clan Mother of the Great Canyon Clan came for the other children, like the Nightsisters' Mother predicted. The little girl said what she was taught to say. That she was staying with her friends. That they took good care of her here. When the Clan Mother tried to approach her, she backed away, keeping Nightsisters between her and the Clan Mother. The Clan Mother could see the fear in the little girl's eyes, and the smirk on the Nightsister Mother's face. She decided not to push the issue, she had recovered most of the children, and took them to the settlement. When she arrived in the settlement, the little boy that made the plea before the council, met them. He started jumping up to see if there was a little head in the midst of the children he did not see yet. Finally he asked the Clan Mother, where Sissy was? That's what he called his little sister. She told him that she said she wanted to stay behind. He looked right at her and said, "I am only a child, but even I know that they made her say that. The Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan would not have left her behind. She would have fought all of those Nightsisters by herself, to make sure she came home. You are not a very good Clan Mother. You did not do, or say anything, when that bad lady tried to kick me out of the meeting, and you did nothing to help Sissy when she needed your help." He ran away crying, much to the embarrassment of his mother, after insulting such a powerful lady. The child's words really stung. The Clan Mother of the Great Canyon Clan would have preferred that he would have slapped her in the face. When she returned to the Council and made her report. The Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan was furious. That is not what she agreed to. She was ready to withdraw from the Council and go to war with the Nightsisters. Even if it meant going to war with every member of the Council. It took both the Clan Mother of the Red Hills Clan, and the Clan Mother of the Misty Falls Clan, to calm her down. They also told the Clan Mother of the Great Canyon Clan, that she broke faith with the Council, and they would never trust her to represent them again. It was only the Clan Mother of the Frenzied River Clan that stood by her. She knew she had failed her peers, but what has been done cannot be undone. The Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan, told her that her mother taught her from when she was small, to value every life, because it is only when you value every life, that your life has value. "What is the value of your life right now, when you do not value the life of an innocent little girl?" She told the Council that she was too angry to stay in the meeting, she would await word in her compound, on how her Sisters can visit the settlements without giving offence to anyone. She turned to the Clan Mother of the Red Hills Clan, and asked her if she could inform her on what was decided. The Clan Mother said that she would."

"The words and actions of the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan, hurt the Clan Mother of the Great Canyon Clan more than the little boy's did. This was a woman that she looked up to and admired. She was like a mother figure to her, and she really let her down. When she returned to her village, she gathered all the elders together. She told them everything that was said and done. She told them that she was no longer confident that she could lead their clan. She asked that they find a better candidate to be Clan Mother, and went to her home. A short time later one of the elders came to her home, they said that they have found who they think is an excellent candidate, the best person for the job, and all the elders want her to meet this special person, to see if she approves. The Clan Mother was surprised, it did not take them very long, maybe they were already thinking of replacing her. She was curious as to which one of the Sisters they thought so highly of. So she let the elder lead her back to their meeting. When she arrived there, she asked them who this special candidate was. They stood up as one and said, "You Are!" They told her that they agreed that she does not have the same fire and passion that burns in the heart of the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan, very few women do. But she has been good and steady. Everything their clan needs. Yes she stumbled and fell and bruised herself pretty bad. But that has never stopped her before. They need her to be strong, and pick herself back up. Her clan needs her. If it helps, she should personally go to the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan and apologise. Maybe she will see that you are still a good person, you're just not perfect. She did feel better after the pep talk, and took two Sisters and departed right away for the Singing Mountain Clan."

"The Clan Mother did accept her, and did accept her apology. She had her recall everything about her trip to the Sandstone Mountain. Every detail about what she heard, what she saw, what she smelt, and what she felt. She told her that what really bothered her, was the smirk on the Nightsister Mother's face. She knew she had been set up, but could not figure out how to get around it, and the fear she saw in the little girls eyes was real, she just could not get close enough to the girl to talk with her. The Singing Mountain Clan Mother wondered what could cause the fear in the little girl's eyes. The Great Canyon Clan Mother said that what would scare her as a little girl, would be if someone threatened her family, and showed that they really could hurt them. The Singing Mountain Clan Mother agreed that that is what happened, but what can be done about it now. The Clan Mother of the Great Canyon Clan looked at her peer, "You're not going to let it go, are you?" "Nope." "If I can remember anything, or think of something. I will definitely let you know." "I'm sorry I was so upset with you." "You were right to be, which is why it hurt so much." They departed friends again. Not as close as they were before, but it was more than the Clan Mother of the Great Canyon Clan could have hoped for."

"The Nightsisters stopped beating their slaves because of the little girl. Sissy was afraid to be around the Nightsisters or the slaves, in case she did something wrong and they beat a slave because of it. Instead, she started spending time with the only Rancor on the Sandstone Mountain. He seemed so sad being there, but would cheer up when she was around. They were like best friends."

"Now Rancor seem to be very afraid of dark force lightning. Light force lightning doesn't bother them. But they are terrified of the dark force lightning. This is how the Nightsisters controlled this Rancor. They would flash a little dark force lightning, and the Rancor could not move fast enough to do what they wanted it to do."

"One day a Nightsister came up to the Rancor, and flashed a little dark force lightning. Now the Nightsister did not know that Sissy was napping right behind the Rancor. The Rancor was so frightened that she would hurt his friend that he killed her. The other Nightsisters just assumed that he had overcome his fear of dark force lightning, and became more respectful of the Rancor. Sissy only found out a few days later that a Nightsister was killed by the Rancor, when mother asked her about it. Mother also started telling her, that if someone comes for her, that she needs to go with them. She should not worry about her or the other slaves. They will be alright. If someone does come for her, then she should know, that they will be powerful enough to protect her family. Because mother told her this almost every day, after she found out that the Nightsister was killed. Sissy started to believe someone was coming for her. Because she was happy, the Rancor was also happy."

"A runner came from the Red Hills Clan. It has been about one year since the last council meeting, its time they got together for another one. The Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan suddenly had an idea. She knew this Sister, and trusted her. She asked her if she was very tired. The Sister looked at her, "I am not so tired that I will not do anything you wanted." The Clan Mother was happy to hear that, because they will be running and climbing all night. But would not tell her anything else. She told her that it was best she did not know. She left her standing where she was, and called an emergency meeting of all her Sisters. After explaining what she wanted each of them to do, they departed. They left the main village and ran almost due south across the rolling hills and woodlands of their highlands. They scaled down the 800 meter high escarpment to the forest of the midlands. They ran through the forest to the edge of the escarpment separating them from the lowlands. They climbed down the escarpment, which was 500 meters high at this point (it is only 400 meters high where the trail is), down to the lowlands. They crossed the woodlands and dales of the lowlands until they came to the settlement. Most of the Sisters slowed down to catch their breath, while the Clan Mother, two Sisters, and the runner from the Red Hills Clan pushed on. Because there had been no major tides in the past year the trail through the swamp was clearly visible. When they reached the base of the Sandstone Mountain, it was just before sunrise. They had completed a cross country trek in just under twelve hours, what normally takes six to eight days riding a Rancor on the trails, and stopping every night. Or would have taken the average person more than a month to walk."

"At the base of the mountain, the Clan Mother told the runner that she has to stay as close to her as possible while they run up the spiral walkway. The Nightsisters that where on guard that night detected using the force, two small creatures, and what could only be a larger predator running up the spiral walkway. They smiled at each other. They get to have a little entertainment, before everyone else wakes up. Suddenly there are two clan Sisters standing behind them, and the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan has picked them both up using the force, and is choking them. They try to reach out using the force to alert the other Nightsisters, but the two clan Sisters seem to be able to block their attempts. After they pass out. The Clan Mother surrenders them to the two Sisters, who confirm that they are still alive and are breathing. When everyone is in position. The Clan Mother emits a powerful force call. This is her signal to her Sisters to surround the mountain, and be prepared to climb. The force call also awakens the Nightsisters, who stumble outside wondering what is going on. The call also awakens Sissy who wakes up mother, and tells her she is here. Mother kisses her on her forehead and tells her to go to her. Some people in the settlement also heard it. In fact all the clans later claimed they felt something."

"The Clan Mother of the Great Canyon Clan woke up with a smile. She knew who had called, and she had guessed the reason why. It will be nice to go to the Council of Mothers, expecting to hear good news for a change. The Nightsisters' Mother demanded to know what the meaning of this is. Two of the Nightsisters went to the edge, and looked down. They told their Mother that they were surrounded by clan Sisters. There must be Sisters from at least three clans down there, for there to be so many. The Nightsisters' Mother did not like the sound of that. They have no escape, and if they start fighting, they will easily be wiped out. The Clan Mother told her that she was here for the little girl. Just then Sissy walks outside and says hello. The Clan Mother tells her that she is here to take her to her mother. She tells the lady that mother is in her room sleeping. The Clan Mother tells her that she is going to take her to her mother that lives with her brother. Sissy just went "oh" and walked up to the Clan Mother. She indicated that she wants to be picked up. So the Clan Mother picks her up and holds her. She whispers in the Clan Mother's ear, asking her, if she can protect her mother and brother? The Clan Mother whispers back that she can, if she gives her something valuable. Sissy is at first disappointed, then she sees something behind the lady. It is almost like a shadow but in colour. When she looks carefully she can see it's a lady. She sees her kiss the back of her hand then points to the lady holding her. Sissy realises that she wants her to kiss the nice lady. So she kisses her on her cheek, and asks if that is valuable. The Clan Mother has tears in her eyes, she tells her it is more than valuable, it is precious. In a loud voice the Clan Mother proclaims, "This little girl has just paid tribute to the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan, with a precious kiss. Though the Nightsisters consider her and her family to be their slaves. Because of this tribute, she is obligated to protect this family. If any harm comes to anyone of them. She will not need permission from the Council of Mothers, to come back here, and drag their dead bodies to the ocean." Everyone on the mountain, and surrounding the mountain, heard her quite clearly. This was the first time that mother knew of, that she had tears of joy in her eyes. She fell back asleep, and had such wonderful dreams. Dreams she has not had since her son was kidnapped, so long ago."

"The two clan Sisters dropped the Nightsisters they were holding. Everyone in the group backed up slowly, until they were out of sight, and down the spiral walkway. As soon as they were out of sight, they ran all the way to the bottom. The clan Sisters cheered when they saw their Mother emerge from the mountain, with the little girl in her arms. When they reached the settlement, the mother of the little girl ran up to the Clan Mother with tears in her eyes, hardly believing that this was her little girl. She thanked the Clan Mother for bringing her back. Sissy reached for her mother, who took her into her arms and hugged her to herself and started balling. Then she covered her daughter's face with kisses mixed with tears, than she hugged her again. Her son also had tears in his eyes, as he looked up at his sister and mother, with one hand on his mother's hip. Finally Sissy started squirming, she wanted to be put down, to be with her brother. He took her hand and told her he missed her, then he reached over and gave her hair a quick tug, and ran off. She went tearing right after him. He ran around a building to be out of sight of the adults, and waited for her. She ran straight into his arms, and he gave her the biggest hug he could give her, and she hugged him right back. "I knew she would bring you back. I really missed you." "I missed you too… Please do not pull my hair. It hurts." "I am sorry! I promise, I will not do it again. He stepped back, and tapped her on the shoulder, "You are the Rancor," and ran off. She called after him, "You are the Moog," then gave her best Rancor roar, and ran after him."

"The settlement was more than willing to share their breakfast with all the Sisters. After breakfast the Clan Mother started issuing orders, she sent a Sister to get the Rancor of everyone going to the Council of Mothers, and asked that they wait for them at the gate, and told her she did not have to rush. She sent Sisters to reinforce the Sisters they left at both villages. They had only left three at each village. She organised the patrols for the lowlands, the midlands, and the highlands. As well as dispatching Sisters to get their Rancor and rendezvous with them. She thanked the runner for being part of this, and asked her to let the Council know that she was going to be delayed. She wanted to hear the little girl's story, and she doubted that she would open up to her right away. She sent the Sisters that were staying with her out hunting, so that they would not be a burden to the settlement. The Clan Mother doubted the Nightsisters would attack her in the settlement, they would know that she had a lot of clan Sisters nearby, and now they knew she had the power to call them through the force."

"That night the Clan Mother told the mother and daughter, her version of their little boy's story. That he did this because he wanted his mostly nice sister back. The little girl sat on her mother's lap sucking her thumb, and stroking her brother's hair because she thought he has really brave. She fell asleep in her mother's lap, listening to the story of how her brave brother spoke to all the strange women, even after the bad lady tried to throw him out. Her brother soon fell asleep leaning against his sister's back and his mother's side, with his mother's arms around them. The two mothers talked for a while. The mother of the children wanted her guest to have the family bed. The Clan Mother told her that her place was sleeping across the door to the room. So that if her daughter wakes up in the middle of the night, she will know that she is keeping her promise, and making sure they are safe. They have no door over the doorway to the family bedroom, so when the little girl woke up in the night to use the chamber pot. The Clan Mother asked if she was all right. She asked the Clan Mother if she could have a cup of water. After the Clan Mother gave it to her and she drank it, then she went back to sleep. She had really woken up, concerned about her family. But now that she knew that the nice lady was protecting them, she knew they were all safe, and quickly went back to sleep. It was only after hearing everyone else's stories in her home, after dinner each night. That the little girl felt comfortable enough to share her story. She told how she was separated from the other children after that lady came. The Clan Mother asked her to describe that lady. As she was describing her, her brother interrupted her, and told her that that was the bad lady who tried to throw him out of the meeting. He described again how the Clan Mother stood up to her. How even after he left to wait outside he could still hear the Clan Mother fighting for them, and how the bad lady had to run away because she was a coward. The Clan Mother was a little embarrassed by the way the boy described her, the only thing missing from his description of her, was her being surround by a bright light and having wings. The mother knew her son adored her, it was good for him to look up to a hero like her. The little girl said that she was not a coward on the mountain. At first the Nightsisters and their Mother treated her as everyone's best friend. Then they tried to treat her the way they treat all the new Nightsisters. But she fought with them, to prove she wasn't someone new, and she forced many of them to admit that she was more powerful than they were. That is when she stopped being their Mother's best friend. Mother told me that the Nightsisters' Mother does not like that she is so strong in the force, and seems to be growing stronger in the dark side of the force. She was not surprised when the Nightsister's Mother told mother that she died in her sleep. That she should carry her body to the Rancor. So that the Rancor can throw it on the trash pile in the swamp. This was the only good part of her story. She always felt more comfortable telling her story when she was sitting on her mother's lap, with her mother's arms around her, because then it seemed like it was only a bad dream. There was an unexpected visitor to the settlement while the Clan Mother was still there, listening to Sissy's story each evening. The Rancor had come down off the mountain, looking for his friend. No one knew if he came down on his own, or if they allowed him to come down. Everyone ran for their homes when he appeared, except Sissy and the Clan Mother. Sissy ran right up to him and climbed up on his arm. He sat down happy, he had found his friend. The Clan Mother realised that Sissy was a beastmaster. She had worked with enough beastmasters, that she could show Sissy how to get the Rancor to do all the really hard work in the settlement. She let all the people of the settlement know that if they treat their beastmaster well, then the Rancor will not harm them. It is only if the Rancor thinks you want to hurt the beastmaster that the Rancor will hurt you. Her brother asked how bad the Rancor would hurt him, because he liked to tease his sister sometimes. The Clan Mother told him that the Rancor would probably eat him as a very little snack. He did not like that. She told him that they have to do something special, so that the Rancor would not eat him. He did not want to be eaten, so he agreed to do whatever she said. She told him that he has to stand on one leg and lean forward, spread his arms out wide, and close his eyes. Because his head was at the right height, she whispered to Sissy to go up to him and kiss him on the cheek. Sissy giggled because she knew the Clan Mother was teasing him, but she did what she was asked to do. When she kissed him he lost his balance and fell over. He was upset with her, and asked her why she did that. Instead of answering, she told her brother to look at the Rancor, he was laughing. None of them knew that the Rancor could do that. Even their mother was laughing because she knew her son was set up. When he realised that the Clan Mother had tricked him, he wasn't upset at his sister anymore. The Clan Mother told him that the Rancor knew from their smell that they were brother and sister, so he would not hurt his friend's family. The boy asked if the Rancor knew by their smell who their mother was. She said he did. Then she tried an experiment. She led the boy off a short distance, and asked him if he could use his body to ask the Rancor to come to him. He tried and the Rancor did. Then she asked the mother who was standing near her daughter if she could call the Rancor to her, and she told Sissy that she had to stand still. The Rancor came to the mother, so the Clan Mother asked the Rancor if they could all communicate with him, he said they could. This would make it easier. She could train the mother in working with the Rancor, because she could better understand what the Rancor needed to do, and the children could learn from her, so the Rancor would not stay as just a play toy for the children."

"The first thing they needed to do, is build a den area for the Rancor, and to make sure it would be big enough to accommodate more Rancor. At first the people of the settlement where unsure of this arrangement, because their Brackaset were not used to having a Rancor so close to them, and were not producing very much milk because of it, for the people to make their cheese. The Clan Mother assured them that by building a den area for the Rancor. The Brackaset would calm down a lot, and get used to having the Rancor around. At least she hoped that this would be what happened. Since they did not have any Brackaset at their villages. After trying the cheese, she wanted to start raising some at their villages. The Clan Mother showed them what trees they would have permission to cut down, to make the den area. They were impressed that the Rancor did most of the work in building its own den. They could see how useful a Rancor could be around the settlement. Before the den was finished the Brackaset, had already started producing more milk, because they were used to its smell, and it never attacked any of them, so they started feeling safe. The den was finished around the same time that the little girl finished sharing her story. The Clan Mother saw that the children's mother was already comfortable communicating with the Rancor. So she told them that she needed to head to the Council of Mothers. They were sorry to see her go, but they knew that clan Sisters were not very far away."

"After she left, one of the Nightsisters came to the settlement and asked them where the Clan Mother was going. She did not use one of the derogatory slurs they usually use for her on the mountain, because the people of the settlement might not cooperate. They told her that she was heading to the Council of Mothers. The Nightsister inspected the den that they built for the Rancor. She was surprised that the Clan Mother had not only given them permission to use her trees to build it, but had actually shown them which ones. She went back to the mountain and reported everything that she found out at the settlement."

"When the Nightsisters' Mother heard about the Council of Mothers, she decided to attend it herself, and accuse the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan, of attacking their mountain, and killing two Nightsisters that were guarding it. Now the Nightsisters' Mother was actually the one who killed them. She was so furious at what the Clan Mother had done, that she tortured the two Nightsisters that were on guard duty that night, until she was sure she understood how the clan Sisters were able to get on top of the mountain, without them being able to raise the alarm. Since they were beyond the point that any healer could help them, she continued to torture them to see how much pain she could inflict on them, before they actually died. All the other Nightsisters were present, so that they could better understand the use of the dark side of the force, in torturing victims, and prolonging their lives."

"The Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan had just finished giving her report on the little girl's experience, in being a hostage of the Nightsisters, when their Mother burst into the meeting throwing to stinking, mutilated, female bodies on the floor, in front of all the Clan Mothers. Then she accused the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan of causing their deaths. She thought she could shock the Clan Mothers and turn them against the Singing Mountain Clan, but they just sat there like this was a normal part of the meeting. The Clan Mother of the Red Hills Clan asked one of her Sisters to identify the bodies. She looked at them and confirmed that they were the two Nightsisters that were on guard duty that evening. She also said that they were alive and breathing when she left the top of the mountain. They were unconscious, but alive and breathing. The Nightsisters' Mother accused her of being a false witness. She could not have been present on the top of the mountain. There was only the Clan Mother and two of her Sisters. She pointed to the two Sisters standing by their Clan Mother, and told the Council that they could hardly be considered impartial. The Sister that identified the two bodies replied, "It's hard to be seen when the person standing in front of you is larger than life. How do you think the little girl knew to give the Clan Mother a kiss?" The Nightsister Mother was taken aback. She knew now that the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan was extremely powerful in the force. She thought at first that she had been using the force to project this image of herself to intimidate the Nightsisters. But if she was doing this to shield this Sister so that none of the Nightsisters could detect her as being present. That meant that the Clan Mother was much more powerful than she imagined. No wonder the Clan Mother of the Frenzied River Clan played the coward, and refused to fight her. She really was afraid to fight her. Yet she had not been intimidated by any of the Nightsisters. That is why she had her eliminated, because her next move would have been to challenge her as Mother of the Nightsisters. Now the Mother had come to the meeting with the intention of challenging the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan. Knowing she would not turn down a challenge given in front of the council. Now she knew that this would be a fatal mistake. So she left the meeting like she was insulted by their presence. Before she was challenged, and forced to play the role of a coward. Her own Nightsisters would gang up on her and kill her if they found out."

"After she left, the Clan Mothers used the force to detect what was really done to the two dead witches. They were even able to determine how the other witches kept them alive through their ordeal. The Misty Falls Clan Mother confirmed that they had been her Sisters. They could tell from their distorted facial features that they regularly practiced using the dark side of the force, so had no sympathy for them. After all the Clan Mothers were sure they knew what happened to the dead witches. They gave the Sisters from the Singing Mountain Clan permission to take their bodies and throw them into the ocean. They adjourned the meeting so that sweet grasses could be burnt to fumigate the room, and get rid of the smell. After the meeting concluded, the Clan Mother of the Red Hills Clan invited the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan to her compound. She showed her all the tributes the settlements had left her. She wanted to know why they did that, considering last year they only gave tribute to the Singing Mountain Clan. She had checked the town's records and knew that the settlements paid tribute to both their clans. The Singing Mountain Clan's Mother told the Red Hills Clan's Mother, that when she sent her Sisters to all the settlements. They told the people that the Red Hills Clan played a big part in them being able to help the family with the kidnapped child. Then being able to bring the evidence of what the Nightsisters were doing before the council. So this must be their way of acknowledging their help. "Besides if I ever get really angry and get myself kicked out of the Council, it's good to have someone else that they can turn to." They both had a good laugh over that comment. The Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan then told her friend that she was planning on leaving there, to go visit some settlements right away. She told the Clan Mother that she could come with her if she wanted. Now the Clan Mother of the Red Hills Clan knew that her friend did not do anything without a reason. Even when she did something spontaneous, like the raid on the Nightsisters' mountain. So she asked to know, why was she going? Her friend told her about the settlements using Brackaset as their beast of burden, because they are docile creatures. They are also able to get milk from the females and make an excellent cheese. She wants to add this cheese to her people's diet, and have the Brackaset as a backup source of meat, for when the hunting gets tough. That way there will be less stress on the Rancor herd. She knew there was a good reason she was going to the settlements, of course she would come along."

"When the two groups approached one another. The Rancor that the Clan Mother of the Red Hills Clan was riding, approached the Rancor that the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan was riding. He asked her Rancor to refrain from attacking him and the members of his herd, because he was carrying an honoured friend of his Herd Mother, and his herd, so would be unable to defend himself if attacked. The Rancor promised he would not attack them, and he would restrain his herd members from attacking. When the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan heard this exchange, she got off of her Rancor and went and hugged all the other Rancor, so they would all have a lingering odour of her scent, to help them restrain from attacking one another. She had already hugged all the women in the group, so they should all be carrying a little of her scent on them. There were no incidents the whole time they were together, and they found out from the settlements that the Rolling Red Hills was a good place to find wild herds of Brackaset. Even though their meat tastes good to humans, the Rancor seem to pass them by, in preference for other game. Maybe they think they are too easy to kill when there are so many other options out there."

"One family from one of the settlements, said that they were willing to be members of the Singing Mountain Clan, and would be willing to share their knowledge in how to care for the Brackaset, and how to make cheese from their milk. They did not think that the Brackaset would thrive near their main village, because of the number of Rancor present. But they did think that they would prosper near a farming village, once they got used to the Rancor being in the village. The Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan, asked her friend if she had permission to round up a herd of Brackaset from the Rolling Red Hills, to take them back with her. Her friend gave her permission. So she sent one of her Sisters to go scout out where some herds might be, then they could all meet back at the settlement. Her friend sent one of her Sisters back to her village to let them know that there are Sisters with their Rancor from the Singing Mountain Clan in their territory. They are not to be challenged if they meet them. The last settlement they went to together was not that far from the Red Hills Clan's village. When the Clan Mother of the Red Hills Clan looked around. She thought that this would make an excellent location for a farming village, for when they were ready to expand. The people in the settlement told them that there was a wild Brackaset herd nearby, but it seems to be getting smaller every time they see it. Because there seems to be an unusually large number of predators in this region. They even have trouble protecting their own herd from the predators. The Clan Mother used this as an opportunity to start negotiations with the settlement to see if they would be willing to join the Red Hills Clan, and become their farming village. The Red Hills Clan would provide them with protection from pirates and slavers, and could cull the number of predators in the area. She suspected that it was because they let them use the two ships as dens. They may need to block up the entrance to one of the ships, so the predators can't get in. If they ram a large boulder in the entrance. It would stop the predators from getting in. But little prey creatures could still get in, and may provide enough of a food source to stop the remaining predators from going after the docile Brackaset. The Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan told her friend that if the settlement did agree to become part of her clan, she could harvest the trees that they needed to build a palisade as compensation for the Brackaset herd they would be taking. The settlement liked the idea of having a secure palisade. They told the Clan Mothers that they had not heard from the settlement that bordered both the Red Hills Clan's territory, and the Frenzied River Clan's territory. They asked if they could check on their friends."

"When the two Clan Mothers arrived, it looked like the settlement had been attacked by slavers. They found the decaying body of one of the men of the settlement with a blaster bolt wound in his chest. They found other signs of struggle, and all the dwellings were trashed. This group did not try to burn the dwellings to cover up their crime, which is probably why it went undetected. It must have happened recently, because both Mothers received tribute from this settlement. The Clan Mother of the Red Hills Clan said that she would send runners to all the settlements, and the clans, to warn them of this latest attack. They burnt the dead body, and scattered the ashes. Then they went back to the other settlement to tell them what they found. They suggested that the people from this settlement go and salvage what they can from the other settlement, since they were their friends. The Red Hills Clan would then claim what was left, and would harvest their fields when harvest time came. Negotiations became earnest when they knew that that settlement was no more, because they were close to the same size, and they now felt vulnerable. Before the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan left to meet up with the family that was joining her clan, the people of the settlement told her that they had agreed to become part of Red Hills Clan, and asked her if they could also harvest trees for their Rancor's den, and an internal enclosure for the Brackaset. She told them they could, as long as they also sent some cheese to her clan over the next year. They agreed. The Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan took all the Rancor from her Sisters back with her. So that the Sisters could help the family move the herd they selected, as well as provide protection for the family and for the herd. She would send them supplies, on a regular bases, because the Brackaset herd would not move very fast. The family estimated that it could take close to three months before they would arrived at the village. Mother's biggest concern was that they all arrived safe."

Captain Richard indicated that he would be jumping back and forth concerning the history of Dathomir, because there were a few things that happened here and there, and he wasn't sure of the exact chronological order.

"The political exiles made some interesting contributions to Dathomir's society. Before the journal writer passed away, a political exile arrived with the knowledge on how to brew ale. He knew how to malt the grain by getting it wet so that it sprouted. Then hit it with hot steam or fry it in a pan to stop it from growing. The reason for this, was because the seeds would create enzymes as soon as they sprouted. The enzymes converted starch into different sugars. You had to stop the seeds from continuing to grow, because they would consume the sugars, and you needed the sugars for the yeast to grow to make the ale. The problem the political exile was having, was in finding a good strain of yeast. He thought the strain they had for making their bread was too slow, and would take forever to make any ale. One day he overheard a town member telling a new political exile about the different fruits you can find around town. He told him about one fruit tree, where the fruit would start to spoil before it became fully ripe. If you tried to pick the fruit it would burst in your hand and you would have a sickly sweet syrup all over you. Long ago the children liked to go pop the fruit, and lick the syrup, but afterward they would have trouble walking, and would fall down a lot."

Andriel gasped and put her had to her mouth, to keep from laughing. Krillgan wanted to know, what was wrong? She told him the children were drunk from licking the syrup. He asked her how she knew. She told him that when her father took her with him to the cantina when she was little, that was how many of the adults were when they left the cantina. They would have trouble walking, and would fall down a lot. She said that they also liked to sing in a very loud voice, and looked at Chitrah when she said that. Who turned a nice shade of purple. The Captain told her she was correct.

"This is what the political exile suspected, and asked to be taken to the tree. He took a wooden water pail with him, and collected the syrup from the bursting fruit in it. He could smell the alcohol being given off from the fermenting fruit juice, and knew he had a good strain of yeast to make his ale."

Chitrah asked, if the Sisters knew about the alcohol?

The Captain told them that they knew there was a mild poison that had affected the children, but they did not have the means to concentrate it so that they could study it.

"So to be safe they asked everyone to stay away from it. They had so many other things to study that they probably forgot all about it. The political exile needed special pieces made so that he could start producing ale. So he visited a number of clans, to talk with the blacksmiths, to see it they could make what he needed. They told him that they had some soft metals that they could use, to make what he wants, because they have no use for the metal, they just needed their Clan Mother's permission. He did not know that the metal they wanted to use, was the best metal they could use for making the containers to brew the ale. Because the metal was not used for anything else, the different Clan Mothers gave their permission. When he finished making his first batch of ale, they stored it in animal skins, because they did not know what else to store it in. He went around to the clans who made the items for him, with his skins of ale. He tried to get the skins as cold as possible before letting the Clan Mother, the Sisters, and the blacksmiths, sample it."

"In the village of the Red Hills Clan, he had the ale skin lowered into their drinking well. Since that was the coldest place in the village. Even though he had it down there for a few hours, it did not get as cold as he would have liked, but at least it was not warm."

"In the village of the Frenzied River Clan, they had him leave it in a quite pool connected to the river. There he found it was chilled the best."

"At the village of the Misty Falls Clan, they had him put it in the pool at the base of the falls. It was cool but not as cold as at the Frenzied River."

"When they sampled his ale he told them about the alcohol it contained, and suggested that it not be given to children. He told them about some of the effects it had on humans, and how it was consumed in large quantities on festive occasions. He offered them a number of skins, and they each promised to try it at their next festival. He did not tell them about the headache they could expect the next morning, if they consumed large quantities."

"The clan elders were not particularly pleased with the results that the ale had on their people. They found that some people became more open and happy, and others liked to be around them. Some became sad and angry, and would often start fights. A lot of people lost their inhibitions, and behaved in what the elders thought was inappropriate behaviour."

Krillgan squeezed his father's shoulder, and asked him about inhibitions. Chitrah told him that inhibitions are self-imposed restrictions we place upon ourselves, to help us in socialising with others, in what we think is an appropriate fashion. As an example he mentioned that both he and Krillgan's mother love sweets. But they have learnt to only indulge themselves on small amounts on special occasions. If they lost self-control with this indulgence, they would consume large quantities of sweets on a regular basis, and their bodies would soon grow to be the size of a Hutt. Krillgan did not think his parents would look good as large fat slugs. He mentioned that there are other areas of their lives were they have set up inhibitions, to protect the relationships they have, at the expense of starting new ones. This is an area where consuming alcohol could have a direct effect, damaging long term relationships. Krillgan looked confused. Chitrah sighed, and told him that it had to do with the way adults interact. He could explain it better, when he was older. Krillgan was starting to understand that life as an adult can be very complicated. Maybe it would be better, if he did not hurry up and get old.

"The elders of all three clans wanted to ban the substance altogether, but the people convinced them that that would be a bad idea, and would divide and hurt the community. Since they knew it was available elsewhere. So the Red Hills Clan, and the Frenzied River Clan, chose to only allow consumption of alcohol on special occasions, and people were asked to limit the amount they consumed. Their Clan Mothers forbid their Sisters from consuming alcohol, unless they had special permission. She did not like that they were vulnerable to attack when the Sisters consumed alcohol. The Misty Falls Clan took a different approach. They only allowed alcohol to be consumed with meals, and not after, on its own. They ended up consuming greater amounts of alcohol than the other clans, but you would never find a drunk clan member. All the clans imposed a minimum age of 15 years, for the consumption of alcohol."

Andriel asked why the age restriction was so low. The Captain pointed out that it was actually high. When you consider how long a year is on Dathomir, having 17 months in a year. By the time you are 15 on Dathomir, you would be 22 or 23 on most other planets. Andriel realised that this was going to be difficult for them in knowing someone's true age, when compared to what they were used to. As well as determining birthdays and anniversaries. This is something she and Chitrah would have to talk about.

"The Clan Mothers reluctantly agreed to allow the people of their clans to produce their own ale. Now the Red Hills Clan was at a disadvantage, when it came to making ale. Because they had no trees growing in their territory, they had to travel a long distance to find the fruit tree growing in neutral territory. When ale was introduced to the Great Canyon Clan, and the Singing Mountain Clan, they adopted the rules of the Red Hills Clan, and the Frenzied River Clan. It was after the journal writer passed away, that a political exile arrived, that was familiar with distillation of alcohol. He also had a good knowledge of storage of alcohol, and of metallurgy. He informed the clans that the soft metals were better for making their pots and pans, because they were better at distributing heat. The cooks found that they had better more consistent results when they used the soft metal pans."

"As a reward for sharing his knowledge, they agreed to cooperate in making the parts he requested so that he could assemble a still. He also convinced most of the clans to store their ale in hardwood barrels and kegs. (Not having ready access to trees, the Red Hills Clan still store a large portion of their ale in skins.) He also had containers made to store the fermenting juice from the tree. Producing a nice wine. He convinced the town to plant a grove of the fruit trees on the west side of town, since that area was never used. The Red Hills Clan helped in planting the grove, on the condition that they would have access to the grove. This cut the distance to 1/3 what they had to travel before, to get to a fruit tree to be able to make ale. He was able to distil fortified ales, and fortified wines, that were available in the trading post. He was also able to distil a highly concentrated alcohol, for medical purposes. When he took this to the clans, the elders were very pleased with the way it cleansed wounds. They were able to convince the Clan Mothers to increase the amount of ale being sent for distillation."

"This opened the door for earrings, now that they had an easy way to keep piercings clean, until they were healed. Since another political exile arrived with the knowledge of refined blacksmithing, for making jewellery. The Sisters would take him the coins and rings they took off of the dead bodies of pirates and slavers and have rings made to remember the battles. The Sisters from the Red Hills Clan wore more rings than anyone else, because they battled more pirates and slavers than anyone else. The Sisters from the Frenzied River Clan were very jealous of them, because no one ever landed near their village, because the land was in transition. So none of them wore rings. They regularly petitioned their Clan Mother to form an alliance with the Red Hills Clan, so that they could battle pirates on their territory. The Nightsisters liked to wear earrings, made from the different metals they traded for. The Clan Sisters liked to wear earrings with colourful stones they found in their territory. The Red Hills Clan found a canyon on the edge of their territory that contained a lovely translucent red stone. They were able to have it made into lovely earrings and necklaces, that all the women of the Red Hills Clan wore, not just the Sisters. They also gave the stones to people they considered their friends. The Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan has a pair of earrings with a large red stone, surrounded by the blue ones found in her own territory. She also has a necklace made with the stones found in every territory. That had been given to her as gifts by the other Mothers. She wears it to every Council meeting, to remind the other Mothers, that at one time, they were all her friends."

"When the Nightsisters discovered ale and the fortified drinks. The only rule they had, was that they were the only ones allowed to consume it. Now the slave settlement which produced the ale for the Nightsisters. Also harvested the juice from the fruit trees found growing in the lowlands. Which they made into wine for themselves. They would drink it mixed with an equal part of water, so if a Nightsister ever asked them what they were drinking, they would say juice and water. Two things that a Nightsister would only ever drink, if she was sick."


	7. Chapter 7

©2016

"It took a while for the Nightsisters to realise that all actions had consequences even when dealing with slaves. After the little girl was rescued from the mountain. Things seemed to go well for the settlement. Even though the Nightsisters were upset, because they thought that the Rancor living in the settlement was allowed to hunt on the lowlands, but he was not. They did nothing, because there were always clan Sisters nearby. Now it was actually the Sisters of the Singing Mountain Clan that were doing the hunting, because the Rancor was always kept busy. Now, the Sisters were used to hunting for their upland Rancor, not a swamp Rancor, so they always brought too much meat. The people of the settlement did not mind. They made sure that none of the meat was wasted. This gave them excess cheese, which they sent to the mountain along with the regular supplies. The Nightsisters liked getting extra food, and they noticed with the Rancor in the settlement, they started producing more. In fact, at planting and harvest, the settlement begged them for extra help, so they were used to sending them all the slaves they felt they could spare from the mountain. The consequence was that the food supplies steadily grew on the mountain. They thought that life was perfect."

"Then a number of Nightsisters found out they were pregnant. When the male slaves found out, they did something unexpected for emotionally dead men. One day the male slaves that still had wives on the mountain as female slaves, said goodbye to their wives, then disappeared. All the other male slaves also disappeared. It was only later that day, when the Nightsisters started looking for them, that they found that they had all walked off the top of the mountain. Apparently, knowing that they could be a father of a Nightsisters' child, was more than the emotionally dead male slaves could bare. The Nightsisters had to rethink how they would have to control male slaves in the future, because this last attempt, that seemed so promising, ended up as a failure, and now they had hysterical female slaves to deal with. The wives of the dead male slaves. They would have preferred to just push them all off the mountain, but slaves were not easy to come by. With all the settlements paying tribute to the hated Singing Mountain Clan. That was no longer a source for them. Their only new source for slaves was political exiles, pirates, slavers, and breeding their own slaves. Though their settlement was growing, it was only because they had been leaving them alone. They needed the hysterical women to keep working for them, so they sent them to the settlement, and kept the more stable ones on the mountain. They could not afford to lose anymore slaves, so they had to stop beating them as entertainment."

"All the female slaves sent to the settlement, moved in with the beastmasters. They remembered the little girl on the mountain, doing her best to help mother, help make their lives a little better. So it was a great comfort to be near her. Their home became known as the widows' house."

"Because they could no longer beat their slaves, the Nightsisters resorted to their traditional form of entertainment, which is fighting one another. When it came time for the babies to be born, mother asked the Nightsisters' Mother if she could arrange a regular supply of Brackaset milk to be delivered from the settlement to the mountain, so that the babies would have a guaranteed source of milk. The Mother thought it was a good idea. So right after the morning milking at the settlement, the Rancor had to run some milk up to the mountain. Of all the babies that were born, one was a male. They had to take him away from his mother right away, or she would have killed him. First, because of the shame of giving birth to a male child, and second, as her first child it would probably be a force user. He would never be trained to use the force, and would be a slave to all the little Nightsisters that were born, looking after their every need."

"The Rancor took the baby boy to the widows' house, so that they could find a surrogate mother for him. So the real mother would not find him and kill him. It was amazing how many political exiles the Nightsisters were able to seduce away from the town and enslave them. All they had to do, is to promise to show them great power. Though they had read the journal, and knew what Nightsisters were capable of. They still found the lure of power too overwhelming. The Nightsisters found that it was best not to make them slaves right away. They would let them have a look at their kingdom, to see if they would have any useful suggestions. That is how they obtained the idea to reinforce the outside of the Sandstone Mountain with sandstone blocks, because it was being eroded away by the great tides."

"A political exile noticed a sandstone outcrop on the escarpment over the lowlands. He assumed that because they went through Singing Mountain Clan's gate at the top of the escarpment, that the lowlands were controlled by the Nightsisters. They never bothered correcting him. They also took the political exiles by the widows' house. In case there was anyone there they were attracted to. If there were, they would force them to marry, and the settlement would have to build them a new home. That is how the settlement grew so quickly into a village. The one woman they never forced to marry, was the beastmaster, even though a couple of the political exiles said that they were interested in her. A clan Sister came by the settlement every year to collect the tribute from the little girl. Usually there would be two of them, and they would get the boy to pay tribute as well. He was willing, when he found out that the tribute was for the Clan Mother, because he wanted her to know that he was also willing to give her a kiss. This was the one assignment that all the Sisters would beg their Mother to send them on. So the beastmaster was protected. If someone wanted her, they would have to convince her to marry him. The political exiles were more used to women swooning over them, than having to approach a woman."

"Now concerning the Sandstone Mountain. The coastal swamp would regularly get covered by tides, whenever two or more of the moons would line up. How high the tide would get, was dependent on how many moons were lined up. When all four moons would line up, which happened once every 15 years. The tide was more than 100 meters high, almost reaching to the top of the Sandstone Mountain, and flooding part of the lowlands. Coming close to the village. When this would happen, a part of the mountain would disappear. Now to get their hands on the sandstone, the Nightsisters had to petition the Council of Mothers, to have the Singing Mountain Clan let them have access to the sandstone formation. The Council told them that they would need to pay the Singing Mountain Clan compensation, for having access. The Nightsisters demanded to know why they needed to pay compensation for a resource that the Singing Mountain Clan was not interested in. They were told that their presence in the area would drive away the local game. They were forced to agree, to paying the Singing Mountain Clan, 10 % of their grain harvest, for as long as they harvested sandstone blocks. They were allowed to build a habitation on the site, for the people who would be working there. So the Nightsisters made some of the couples they forced to marry, to go live at the sandstone quarry. They made the guy who gave the suggestion, the position of site foreman. They found that between planting and harvest they could have a large number of the slaves working at the quarry. But during planting, and harvest, most of the slaves had to be at the village. They enlisted the help of more swamp Rancor, by threatening them with dark force lightning. Since they found it boring to stay at the quarry to keep an eye on the Rancor, they convinced the young beastmaster, who was growing into a young man, to be in charge of the Rancor at the quarry. The Rancor much preferred working with the young man, over the Nightsisters. They would also go help at the settlement during planting and harvest."

"As the son of the Nightsister grew in the village, he became arrogant and belligerent, often getting into fights with the other children in the village. When they complained to the Nightsisters' Mother, she decided it was time the little Nightsisters started training their slave. They would treat him as their pet. They put a leash on his neck, and make him go around on all fours. If he miss-behaved, they would burn the hairs on his body with dark force lightning. The mothers of the little Nightsisters would harass the mother of the boy, thanking her for providing such a nice pet for their little girls."

"With the influx of new male slaves, more Nightsisters became pregnant. When it was time for them to give birth. They followed the same procedures as before. If a son was born it was immediately removed from its mother. Only this time it was harder to find surrogate mothers in the village. This time when a son was born, a male slave was chosen to be punished. They had to choose one, because no one was sure who the father was. The little Nightsisters would compete for the privilege of beating the male slave. Their pet was forced to watch, so that he knew what awaited him, if he got them really upset. One time they even beat one of the male slaves to death."

"The little Nightsisters foolishly took their pet with them wherever they went. Which meant he got to watch them train. He got up at night, when everyone else was asleep, and practised the things he saw. One day he snapped, and killed the little Nightsister whose turn it was to have him as her pet that day. Unfortunately he did this in front of the other little Nightsisters, who in fear all turned on him at once. He managed to kill two more and deeply scar most of the others, before he was finally killed. His mother was very proud of her son. She would often remind the other Nightsisters, that with a little training, they all would have been her son's slaves. This deeply concerned the Nightsisters' Mother. She wanted force user males, because she believed that they would sire stronger force user daughters. Unfortunately this boy died before he was old enough to father children. As it was, she considered her Nightsisters to be pathetically weak, because they were not strong enough to stand up to the clan Sisters of the Singing Mountain Clan."

"This weakness was exposed a number of times. The Nightsisters would regularly go out to the settlements. They knew they could not steal the people and make them slaves, but that did not mean they could not steal anything else. They prized metal objects above anything else. Since they had no natural source of metal in their territory. Little Nightsisters were known to come up to little girls playing with the doll their mother had made them, and take the dolls from them, because no one ever made a doll for them, and they wanted one. One time, one Nightsister was so successful in stealing from the settlements, that she forced a midland Rancor to carry her booty for her. For some reason the Nightsister thought that the Singing Mountain Clan would let her pass through the gate unchallenged. She just barely escaped that encounter with her life. The clan Sisters assured the Rancor that they would not kill him, if he led them back to where he was first forced to help the Nightsister, and helped them get the stolen articles back to their rightful owners. They kept their promise."

"One time a young man of the village wanted to marry the young female beastmaster. She was turning into a lovely young lady. He had to ask permission of a Nightsister to do so. The first one he encountered, was a scarred Nightsister. She told him that he had to sleep with her first, to rid her of the shame of her virginity. He refused, so she killed him. Leaving his body near the village. It was not long before the village found his dead body. They could tell that a Nightsister killed him, and they guessed it was because he wanted to marry the beautiful beastmaster. A few days later a starship landed next to the village, and half the village got aboard. Telling the slavers in the ship to take-off, before the Nightsisters came and made them all slaves. The Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan was sure that some of the political exiles that had boarded that ship, still had considerable personal wealth on the planets they were from, and could afford to buy freedom for the villagers. The Nightsisters' Mother was furious at losing half of the people of the village, and blamed the scarred Nightsister for it. She wasn't upset that she killed the young man. She was upset that she left his body where it would be easily found, and caused the exodus of her slaves. She had the other Nightsisters torture her, then finally let her own mother kill her, to end her suffering. As far as anyone knew, she died a virgin."

"The Nightsister's Mother decided it was time to build a palisade around the village. Not to protect the village from marauding predators, or pirates, or slavers. But to cause a restriction on how quickly the people could leave, whenever a ship showed up. When she first tried to harvest trees for the palisade, the clan Sisters forced everyone away from the trees. Even though they were outnumbered, the clan Sisters easily defeated the Nightsisters. It did not help the Nightsisters that the clan Sisters all rode upland Rancor, while they were without rides. The Beastmaster refused to let her Rancor leave the village to help them, until they obtained permission from the Singing Mountain Clan to harvest their trees. The Nightsisters felt that this was in part, retaliation, for one of them killing her daughter's fiancé. They knew that to touch her, would be all the excuse the Singing Mountain Clan needed to eliminate them. The Nightsisters' Mother was forced to appeal to the Council of Mothers. Because there was no way that she would negotiate directly with the Singing Mountain Clan. When she approached the Council to talk with the Singing Mountain Clan on her behalf, they asked her what she was willing to offer in compensation. She wanted to know why she should compensate them for a resource they weren't using. The Clan Mothers rolled their eyes. They have been down this road before. They told her point blank that she either offer compensation, or she should stop wasting their time. She asked them, why they can't just order her to let them have the trees. They told her that it would be easier to order her to return the Sandstone Mountain and the southern coastal swamp to the Singing Mountain Clan, and submit to their Clan Mother's judgement. This was not the way the Nightsisters' Mother thought this would go. She was already giving a portion of each crop harvested to the Singing Mountain Clan. Finally she decided to offer some cheese. She would have rather offered some time with her male slaves, but she doubted the uppity Clan Mother would take it. They asked her how much cheese. She said the village's production for one seven day cycle. She figured that she could still keep some cheese, and claim that is all they made. They told her that the Clan Mother was agreeable to one month's worth of cheese production. She said that was too much, and countered with half a month's worth of cheese. They told her that since she turned down the Clan Mother's generous offer, she was now asking for two months' worth of cheese. This floored the Nightsisters' Mother. She asked them how she could do that. They told her that the Clan Mother is under no compulsion to let her have any trees. If she wants the trees she has to negotiate seriously, or the Clan Mother can refuse to negotiate altogether. She reluctantly agreed to the Clan Mother's first offer. They told her that the Clan Mother accepts. They told her how many wheels of cheese she was expecting to be delivered to the gate, every cycle. Her clan Sisters will show her people which trees they can harvest for the village's palisade. The Nightsisters' Mother was taken aback that the Clan Mother knew exactly how much cheese her village produced every day. She knew that her Nightsisters were going to be upset, that they will have to be without cheese for a month."

"When the clan Sisters were showing the villagers which trees they could cut down. One of the women from the widows' house approached a clan Sister, to ask if she could talk with her. A Nightsister saw that the villager approached a clan Sister, and she went over to whip her with her new leather braided whip. The clan Sister grabbed the whip and tore it right of her hand. She then proceeded to whip the Nightsister with her own whip. The Nightsister retaliated with dark force lightning. The clan Sister surrounded herself with an air shield, which protected her from the lightning, but did not protect the villager that was standing a few feet away. The clan Sister was so angry she hit the Nightsister with a force push. Which slammed her into a tree trunk, momentarily stunning her. The clan Sister than ran up to her and started whipping her again. The sting of the whip quickly brought her to her senses. So she quickly threw up an earth shield to block the whip, and ran away."

"Now all the Sisters are taught to master the four elements. Air, Earth, Water, and Fire. Each element has an attack component, and a defence component. Each element can be controlled using either the light side or the dark side of the force. Most Sisters find it easier to use the light side, especially for the defensive components. For Air the defensive component is to form a dense bubble of air, to surround the force user. It is primarily the defense against Air's attack component, which is lightning. It can also be used to protect against Water, and Fire. Deflecting both attacks. But an Earth attack is strong enough to penetrate an air shield. A well practiced force user, can make a small Air shield to surround just the head, for when they want to go underwater. Or take a large Air shield, and draw it close to their body, so that they could dive into the water, otherwise a regular Air shield would just have them skip across the top of the water. The Water element, needs to be practised near or in water. The Water shield can be used as a defence against all the other elements. But to protect against force lightning, they must create a complete Water shield bubble, which is only practical in water. The attack component of water, is a water lance. Earth has a shield which is useless against Air and Water. Unless the practitioner is sufficiently powerful enough to make an Earth shield out of living rock, which is strong enough to block a water lance. Again to use the Earth element you must be near a source of the element. For instance. If you are on top of a granite mountain, and were not sufficiently strong enough to use the living rock component of the Earth element. All you would do is tire yourself out, if you tried to use it. Another poor source material for either the Water element or the Earth element, is mud, because it contains both elements, so cannot be controlled by either. The Fire element uses wind as its defensive component. A skilled practitioner can use the wind to knock a ball of force fire back at the person that threw it. Otherwise the wind just absorbs the fireball and disappears. It offers no protection against the other elements, so is rarely practised."

"The clan Sister went to check the villager, and saw that she was badly burnt. She forced the woman's vital signs to minimum, if it did not help in any other way it would keep her unconscious, until she could get her to a healer. She took the unconscious woman up on her Rancor. Told the other clan Sisters to send everyone back to the village, there will be no more work today. Then headed for the Singing Mountain Clan's main village. The clan Sisters started herding the people back to the village. The Nightsisters protested, but their protest fell on deaf ears. Some of the clan Sisters dared them to make a stronger protest, but the Nightsisters backed away."

"The healers dealt with the woman and returned the woman's vital signs to normal. When she found out she was in the main village of the Singing Mountain Clan, she asked if it was permissible for a slave to speak with their Clan Mother. They told her that she was their guest and not a slave, and the Clan Mother was waiting just outside to find out if she would be alright. While one of them went to get the Clan Mother, the other healers told her that they were able to get the dark force energy out of her. So nothing was damaged internally, but they were not able to keep her skin from scarring. They have an ointment that they would like to massage into her skin over the next few days, which should make her scars more elastic. So she should have no motion impediments due to the scarring. When the Clan Mother came into the room the woman wanted to get up and kneel before her but the healers restrained her. She started to cry, and asked them why they won't let her show this woman the respect she deserved. The Clan Mother had tears in her eyes. She sat on the edge of the woman's bed and told her that if she truly respected her, than she should also respect her healers, and listen to them. The woman calmed down, and promised to listen to the healers. Then the Clan Mother asked her why she wanted to talk to her. She told her that when she was on the mountain, the little girl that she rescued, often helped mother to minister to them. She overheard mother tell another slave that the girl has a heart of a healer. She does not turn away from any injury, yet she tries to be as gentle as possible in administering the ointment. Now their village has no healer, but needs one. The Nightsisters know nothing about healing. They just know pain and death. She was hoping that one of her Sisters could teach the young beastmaster about healing, for the sake of the people of the village. One of the healers said she would go. Her Mother said no. She would be too easily spotted as a Sister. They need someone who looks similar to this woman, who could pass as her, and not attract the attention of the Nightsisters. That way she could spend time with the young beastmaster, while this woman undergoes a lengthy convalescence. One of the older healers realised that she looked like her, and if she applied some plant gum to her skin, it would look like she had some scars too. She said that she would go. "It would be a change to work with someone who knew what they were doing." The Clan Mother told her that this sense of humour was required by someone who was going to do what she was about to do. They exchanged clothes. The Sister applied plant gum, and took a small gourd of it with her, because she would need to reapply it while she was there. The Sister that brought the woman. Carried her Sister back, so it looked like she was returning her to the village."

"In the village the Sister picked the healer up in her arms, and jumped off of the back of her Rancor. Using the force to slow her descent, so she landed as light as a feather. Something you want to do when the person you're carrying has been injured. She told her Rancor to wait outside the village so as not to upset the village Rancor very much. She did not have to do that, because the village Rancor was used to the Rancor from the Singing Mountain Clan being nearby, and his beastmaster always told him that they were friendly. He could also smell their scent on the meat the clan Sisters delivered to the village. They would not share a kill with him unless they were friendly. The young beastmaster came out to help the poor lady, and noticed right away that this was not her friend. The Sister asked her where she can lay her down. The young beastmaster led them to her home. Once inside she asked the woman who was being carried, who she was and where her friend was. "Why I'm your new instructor." They explained to her why her friend tried to talk with the Sister in the first place. They said that their Mother thought this was the best way to bring her a healer as an instructor, so the Nightsisters don't know she is there. The young beastmaster wanted to know why it was so important that the Nightsisters did not know she was being trained as a healer. She said that the Nightsisters think they interfere too much with the village already. They themselves have no knowledge of healing, which would make them even more jealous. Also, if they knew she was a healer, they would try to get her to go to the mountain, to help mother raise all their brats. They would even go as far as to poison mother, to get her to go up there to heal her. She admitted that that would be the only way they could get her back on the mountain. If she knew mother was not well and needed her help. She looked at her new instructor, and asked her where they begin. Her instructor told her to bring her a sample of every herb that grows around the village, and they can talk about the properties of each one. The new student told her instructor about the herbs that mother uses on the mountain. She has not found any around the village, and believes that they only grow in the coastal swamp. The healer was very interested in finding the plant that has a numbing affect. Her student drew pictures of all the leaves that mother used on the mountain. The healer was impressed that she could remember how they looked, after all these years. She told her that she would be leaving her for a few days, to see if she can find these plants in the east coastal swamp, because she did not think it would look good for her to be traipsing through the south coastal swamp, with all the Nightsisters present."

"The healer was successful, and even identified the plant that numbs the pain. She gave her student a description of what the whole plants looked like, in case she ever needed to go down to the swamp to find them. Her student told her that she smelt the odour of the numbing plant recently. When she thought about it, she said that she smelt it when she was near one Nightsister, but not the others. Then it hit her. The Nightsister she smelt it from, had a bow and arrows, while none of the other Nightsisters did. Now all the young Nightsisters revered mother. She was the only mother they knew. Whenever one of them was injured, she was the one they ran to for healing. When they had that fight with their force using pet. She was the one they turned to, to heal their burns. They followed her to her source of herbs that she used for healing. They respected her too much to take her herbs away, in case they needed them themselves in the future. But now that they knew what the plant looked like, they were able to find other plants, and picked the leaves. They found they could use the alcohol they used to keep their pierced ears from being infected, as an agent to extract the essential oil from the plant and concentrate it to the point that it caused muscle paralysis. They dipped a hunting arrow in the solution, and shot a male slave in the leg. In a short time he fell over and could not use that leg. They showed their discovery to the Nightsisters' Mother, by shooting another male slave in the leg. This time they nicked a major vein. This carried the poison to the heart paralysing the heart, causing him to die. But he did fall down and was not able to use his leg before his heart stopped. Mother than had them shoot one of the Nightsisters in the leg, to see if the force could be used against it. Because no one volunteered to be shot, since a slave had died. Mother picked one. The Nightsister was able to use the force to lessen the effect of the poison. But her leg did feel numb, and she had trouble walking. Mother knew it would be hard to shoot a clan Sister with an arrow, but it is something they should have on all their edged weapons. It could give them an edge in battle. They should still coat all of their arrows, because it could help them capture pirates and slavers. Making them their slaves. The Nightsisters had other encounters with clan Sisters while they were harvesting the trees. It usually involved a Nightsister abusing a slave, and the clan Sister stepping in to protect that person. It always ended with the Nightsister running away because she feared for her life. Their Mother went to complain to the Council of Mothers about this treatment. The Clan Mothers told her that if her Nightsisters did not want to be abused, they should not provoke the Sisters of the Singing Mountain Clan while in their territory. They even gave the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan permission to have one of her Sisters throw her out, because she was wasting their time. She went out on her own, indignant by the way she was treated by the Council of Mothers. The Sister that escorted her out told her to be more respectful of her superiors. She told the Sister that they were not her superiors. The Sister said that all the Clan Mothers were superior to both of them, and if she did not believe her than challenge her, so that she could prove she was her superior as well. The Nightsisters' Mother did not know how strong this Sister was. But since she was standing with her Mother in the Council chamber, she had to be well trained, so would be difficult to beat in a fight. Since all of her Nightsisters have been beaten in all of their encounters with the Sisters from the Singing Mountain Clan, she thought it best not to challenge the Sister. She told her that she had pressing matters back at the mountain, but might take up her offer another time. The Sister told her that whenever she felt like being humiliated, she should contact her. The Nightsisters' Mother left quickly before she said something she would later regret."

"Because of the Nightsister's Mother's trip to the Council of Mothers to complain, the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan ordered a stop to the harvesting of trees for the palisade, until all the cheese had been received at the gate. She feared that the Nightsisters would stop sending the cheese once the palisade was complete, as retaliation. She doubted that the Council would let her go to war over cheese. This enraged all the Nightsisters, but they could do nothing but deliver the cheese."

"One time two young Nightsisters happened to be close to a settlement when pirates landed to attack it. They decided to attack the pirates, then take the people of the settlement as their slaves. Because it would look like the pirates took them. They knew the effective range of a blaster rifle from the male slaves. So they knew that they should stay that distance away, and half again to be safe. Which was well within their bow range. Because they were able to carry the arrow using the force, it had the same penetrating power at 250 meters as it had at 50 meters. Non force users could only shot an arrow around 100-125 meters, and they would have to shot it up into the air to get it to go that far. Where a force user could keep it on target the whole distance it was traveling. So they shot the first two pirates in the leg as soon as they stepped off the ramp. The Nightsisters had to keep moving because the pirates returned fire, and would eventually zero in on them if they remained stationary. The Nightsisters were able to hit two more, but they were still on the ramp. When they went down, two more pirates appeared to try and help them. The young Nightsisters were too impatient, and shot the two new pirates while they were still on the ramp. The pirate ship took off, then started lifting its ramp. Leaving two behind, but saving four. One of the two mothers at the settlement suspected the Night Sisters would now try to abduct them, so she scratched a quick note on a piece of leather. "Nightsisters attacking pirates. They will come for us next.""

"Now one very good thing the political exiles brought to Dathomir, was the Standard Basic Alphabet. The Kwa had taught all the species they worked with the Basic spoken language, to make it easier to communicate with all the different alien species. Basic was also the spoken language of the Rakata Infinite Empire. It was only after the collapse of the Infinite Empire that different planets tried coming up with a written forms of Basic. Because space travel happened at around the same time, linguists from a number of planets were able to compare notes, and adopted the Standard Basic, for the written language. Within one generation, most adults on Dathomir, learnt how to write Standard Basic. Children cringed at the thought that they would be forced to learn something new, on top of what they were already taught."

Krillgan smiled because he did not know how to read or write. His time was coming.

"Even the Sisters stopped using the Kwa symbols in their books of Knowledge and Wisdom. Since it was easier to write ideas in Standard Basic, than it was with the Kwa symbols. All Sisters are still taught the symbols as part of their education. Because they did not rewrite the first parts of their book in case they misinterpret what is written and important knowledge is lost." The Captain was looking at Krillgan when he said it. "The mother was hoping, that when the Sisters from the Red Hills Clan came to investigate the pirate attacks, they would find the note, and know that they have been taken as slaves by the Nightsisters. Now her little daughter had the doll her mother made her, stolen by the Nightsisters the year before. Now the mother wanted to make her another one, but she was afraid that it would also be stolen. So her father carved her some small figurines out of wood to represent their family, and their neighbours. The little girl loved them, and played with them all the time. She also liked that they were easy to hide when the Nightsisters came by. When the Sisters from the Red Hills Clan came by, she would always get them to play with her, so they were quite familiar with all her figurines. When the Sisters came to investigate, they found one of the figurines in the settlement, but not in the direction of the pirate ship. They knew the little girl was very careful in looking after her figurines, so they looked around to see if they could find more. They found another one not that far away, and kept looking in that direction. By the time they found the third, they saw that they were in a line. When they looked out over the grassland, in the direction the figurines indicated, they could see that a large group of people passed that way recently, and were heading in the direction of Neutral Town. One of the Sisters continued in that direction, keeping her eyes peeled for more figurines. The other Sister went to have a closer look at the settlement. In the little girl's home, amongst the smouldering debris, they found a partial burnt piece of leather. When they picked it up they saw that something was written on it. All they could make out was "Nightsisters fighting pir" and that was it. No wonder there were relatively few tracks between the landing site and the settlement. They also had expected to find the dead body of the father, because he would have fought against the pirates. But he would not have fought a Nightsister. One of them ran back to their main village to inform their Mother. So that she could send a runner to the Singing Mountain Clan, to warn them about the abduction. The others ran to catch up to their Sister following the trail. If they can catch up to the group before they reached the lowlands then she would need help fighting the Nightsisters. When they caught up to her, she had found more figurines. She stayed down following the trail, until they had found all of the little girl's figurines. Then she got up on her Rancor, and the three Sisters followed the trail as fast as they could. When they approached the town they had to slow down, because there was crisscrossing foot traffic. Once past the town, they were able to speed up again, because the trail was clear again. They were able to follow the trail the group left, right up to the escarpment above the sandstone quarry. They were able to make out a small trail. Which would be easy for a Nightsister to use, but would be very difficult for a non-force user. It looks like they made it down to the lowlands, and the sandstone quarry is not very far from the west trail leading down to the swamp. They decided to head to the gate before attempting to go down to the lowlands. As they approached the gate, they could see a large group of Rancor with Sisters sitting on them. They decided to stop where they were, and only one Sister ran ahead to the group. So there would be no conflict between their Rancor, and the Rancor of the Singing Mountain Clan. The Sister that ran up on foot spotted the Clan Mother. She gave a full report on what they found since they left the settlement. The Clan Mother instructed one of the Sisters standing watch at the gate to go with the Sisters from the Red Hills Clan, so that they can show her where the small trail is. She told the Sister that they will look after things from here. So that there would be no conflict between their Rancour. Otherwise they would be happy to have them come along. The Singing Mountain Clan Sisters descended to the lowlands. Then ran to the Nightsisters' farming village. The swamp Rancor that was still there was familiar with their Rancor, so should not feel intimidated, even though it was much smaller. The Clan Mother talked first with the beastmasters, than talked with the Rancor, asking if it could guide them through the swamp to the mountain. The Rancor was happy to help the ones who kept bringing it meat, so it led the way. When they were close enough to the mountain. The Clan mother told the swamp Rancor to head back to the village. He should not be seen by the Nightsisters to be helping them. The Rancor was smart enough to understand, and ran back to the village. The Singing Mountain Clan Sisters surrounded the mountain, then started climbing up it. The first part was the hardest because they were climbing up sandstone blocks that were only cemented together with tar from the swamp's tar pit. The last part of the climb was the easiest and the fastest."

"The Nightsisters on guard duty raised the alarm, as soon as they sensed the clan Sisters surround the mountain. They were not happy to see so many Sisters on their Rancor climb up over the lip of the Mountain. They were outnumbered and not as well equipped. They doubted their poison tipped arrows could even penetrate the hide of a Rancor, even if they tried to use the force to push it in. The Nightsister's Mother stepped forward, and asked them why they were there. The Clan Mother told her that they were there to pick up the people from the settlement, who have paid tribute to their clan. She asked them why they thought they were there. The Clan Mother told them that the Sisters from the Red Hills Clan tracked their trail to the top of the escarpment where the sandstone quarry is. They just followed it the rest of the way here. The Clan Mother lied, but did not think it was worthwhile telling her the truth. The Nightsisters' Mother was bothered by the Sisters being able to track the people from the settlement, all the way to the mountain. The young Nightsisters assured her that they made it look like pirates had taken them. She had no choice but to return the settlement people to the clan Sisters. She had the Nightsisters bring them all out. Fortunately they had not done anything to them yet, because they had only arrived shortly before the clan Sisters did. When the people from the settlement came out and saw the Sisters from the Singing Mountain Clan there, sitting on top of their Rancor, they were jubilant. The Clan mother directed each one to a different Rancor. The Sisters helped them to climb up and told them to hold on to them. The wives told their husbands to be careful where they put their hands. Which caused their husbands to turn red, and made the clan Sisters laugh."

Krillgan squeezed his father's shoulder. He wanted to know why the wives would say that to their husbands. Andriel smiled at Chitrah, letting him know he was on his own in answering that question. Chitrah reminded Krillgan that women have their mountains of womanhood. It is not appropriate for a husband to touch another woman's mountains, even accidentally. Krillgan asked if it was appropriate for a husband to touch his wife's mountains. "Yes, but not when anyone can see him." Krillgan looked at his mother, who was turning a little darker. Then he looked at his father, who was smiling at his mother. He had never seen his father touch his mother's mountains even by accident. So when did he touch them? He looked at them both again. His mother was definitely a lot darker, and his father was smiling, but starting to turn purple. Maybe it was best if he did not know right now. He looked at the Captain who was also smiling, looking at his parents. Krillgan cleared his throat, then asked the Captain to continue.

"The Clan Mother asked the headman of the settlement if everyone was there, and were they leaving anything behind. The headman said, "Just those two pirates," who came limping out of the building. They both had leg wounds. The pirates pleaded with her not to leave them behind. She asked them what they were doing at the settlement. They admitted that they were there to raid the settlement, and take anything that was of value. "So you were there to take the people away as slaves?" They admitted they were. Again they pleaded to be taken away, because what these women will do to them is inhuman. "How is that any different from taking the people away to be slaves on another planet? Not to mention that you would probably have raped all the women, before you got there. You have also put me in the awkward position, of having to thank the Nightsisters, for keeping your companions from hurting these people. Anything they do to you, you deserve." The Clan Mother, true to her word, did thank the Nightsisters for driving the pirates away. Then they all departed. The Nightsisters now knew that they had permission, to engage pirates anywhere, and they could keep as slaves any pirates they captured. Because if the Singing Mountain Clan would not defend them, neither would the other clans. This incident was not a total waste, as far as the Nightsisters were concerned. When the Rancor climbed down to the top of the sandstone blocks. The Sisters let the Rancor jump down from there, and used the force to lighten their landing. At the base of the mountain. The Sister that had the little girl holding onto her, handed her a bag. When she looked inside, she found all of her figurines. She told the little girl that the Sisters from the Red Hills Clan found them. That was how they knew pirates had not taken them. That is also why she did not give them to her on the top of the mountain. So the Nightsisters would not know. The Clan Mother asked them if any of them remembered the way through the swamp to get here. The headman said that he heard her say they had followed their trail. The Clan Mother admitted that she lied. She wanted to get to the mountain as fast as possible, to prevent the Nightsisters from doing anything to them. The people told her they are all grateful she did, and will keep it as a secret. The headman's wife said that she thought she remembered the way. The headman affirmed that his wife was good with directions. So she led the way, while everyone else followed. The Clan Mother later had her clan plant a lot of prickly bushes at the top of the trail, above the quarry. It would not stop the Nightsisters from using it. But it would prevent non-force users from going that way."

"The Nightsisters were frustrated that they had to replace the sandstone blocks whenever a major tide swept across the swamp. A political exile that one of the Nightsisters had seduced, told them that he could provide them with a more permanent solution, if they agreed to let him return to the town to live. The Nightsisters' Mother agreed to let him go, provided it was a good solution. He asked if he could use a blaster rifle that they had taken from the pirates. (They kept the blaster rifles, because only a couple of them had swords, and arrows were useless against clan Sisters.) The Nightsisters' Mother let him have one, but promised she would kill him if he tried using it on any of them. The man took the blaster rifle, and fired it repeatedly at a sandstone block. Making the hole a little bit bigger each time he fired it, until he had drained the power cell. He told them to go look into the hole he had created, to see what he made. They looked in the hole. It only penetrated about a third of the way into the block. But they could see that there was something different in there. The blaster bolts hitting the sandstone block had caused fractures to appear in the block. The Nightsisters were able to tear the block apart to get at the transparent blob inside. They had to hold it using the force, because it was still too hot to touch with bare skin. They asked him what it was. He told them it is called glass. When you heat sand to high temperatures, it transforms into glass. Because sandstone is mainly compressed sand. Heating it will cause it to turn to glass. They wanted to know how this would protect their mountain. He told them that on the world he came from, almost all their drinking containers were made from glass, because it was resistant to most liquids. Even liquids that would harm most other materials. If they could heat the sandstone blocks they were placing around their mountain, to a high enough temperature. They would turn to glass. That would make it immune to the erosion effects of the super tides. By now the Nightsisters could handle the blob. The Nightsister's Mother noticed how smooth it was. If the entire outside surface of their mountain was covered in smooth glass. There would be no purchase for the Rancor's claws. They would not be able to climb up the outside of the mountain. The only way up to the mountain top, would be up through the spiral walkway they had carved. Which would finally make their mountain defensible against a Singing Mountain Clan attack. She needed to know the cost in resources, to have this project done. She also needed to talk with the Nightsisters in charge of following the movement of the stars, and of Dathomir's four moons, to see how much time they have before the next major tide. The man suggested that since their sandstone blocks were an average of a half meter thick. He estimated that they would need to place a double layer of blocks around the mountain. To get a layer of glass around a hand width thick. Which means they would have to surround the mountain with one giant bonfire. Because of the time constraints the Nightsisters' Mother had everyone from the village at the sandstone quarry. The beastmasters had to point out that the people and Rancor needed to eat, or they would only be able to produce half the blocks she wanted before they all died. She reluctantly agreed to have some of the people working on preparing food for the others. She also had her Nightsisters go into the neutral territory to start harvesting trees there. Since they did not need the tall straight trees from the Singing Mountain Clan's forests. What they did, was gut the inside of a grove of trees. From the outside it would look untouched, but there were no trees on the inside. When they had enough sandstone blocks, she had them produce an additional amount to come up 1/3 of the way up the mountain in case they were needed, before she let the slaves return to the village. When her Nightsisters finished placing the last block around the mountain. She had them clear cut all the trees around the sandstone quarry, since the clan Sisters had been staying away. The next night she tried to cut all the trees above the quarry, but the Sisters at the gate heard them, and came out to challenge them. Forcing the Nightsisters to flee. The next morning, looking down from the top of the escarpment at the quarry, they saw the devastation the Nightsisters had done to their forests. They sent one of the Sisters to inform their Mother. The Nightsisters in the meantime had kicked all of the slaves out of the village, and moved in. Forcing the slaves to sleep around the outside of the palisade, and next to their fields on the ground. Then they lit the bonfire. For two nights the light from the bonfire could be seen from the main village of the Singing Mountain Clan. The Nightsisters forgot that hot glass is a liquid. Most of it pooled around the base of the mountain. With a very thin layer on the mountain itself. They almost sealed themselves out of the mountain. The Nightsisters found that by heating the glass. They could use the force to start pushing the glass back up the mountain, and open up the entrance to the spiral walkway."

"When the man found out when the next major tide was expected. He told the Nightsisters' Mother that she had to give the glass time to cool before the tides came. If the cold ocean water touched hot glass, the glass would shatter, and everything they did would be wasted. They were able to force the glass about ¼ of the way up the mountain before stopping to let the glass cool. The political exile had suggested that the glass be allowed to cool for at least one cycle before the tides came. The Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan sent an envoy of Sisters demanding compensation for all the trees they had cut down without permission. The Nightsisters' Mother told them that she would be willing to negotiate at the next Council of Mothers, which she knew was still a few months away. The tides that came were only 15 meters high. They came regularly for the next ten days before they subsided. That would have been enough to wash away the base layer of sandstone blocks."

"When the Nighsisters examined the base of the mountain. The only evidence that they could find of the tides, was the debris left behind in the spiral walkway. The Nightsisters' Mother was satisfied that the man had given them what he promised, and let him go free. The Nightsister that seduced him, was upset that her Mother let the only male slave she had access to, go free. The Nightsisters' Mother told her that if she was that good at seducing him. She should be able to do it again. The Nightsister did go visit him quite regularly in town. He would always welcome her into his residence. The town's people questioned him about his relationship with her. One of the women even went so far as to suggest he might be in love. The man laughed, he said that he doubted that either one of them knew anything about love. He enjoyed her visits, and apparently she did as well, because she kept coming back. When she did not show up for a period of time, the town's women speculated that she was pregnant. When she did come back, everyone saw that she looked a little different. She did resume her regular visits. When he was pressed by the town's people about the break, he simply said that she did not say anything, and he did not ask."

"It took longer for the Nightsisters to gather the wood they needed for the next phase of the operation, because the clan Sisters were keeping a close eye on them. They also collected most of the swamp cane they could find, and built a scaffold around the mountain for them to climb on. They divided the Nightsisters up to preform designated tasks. Half of them were to handle the glass once it was soft enough. A third of them were needed to keep the fire in position. The rest were needed to continue to replenish the fire. They started by building a ring of fire around the base of mountain. Once the Nightsisters' Mother felt the fire was strong enough. The glass handlers and the fire handlers, used the force to pick the fire up and hold it around the base of the blob of glass they had left, about a quarter of the way up the mountain. Because they were starting with cold glass, and not the blob of hot glass that they first had around the base of the mountain. They had to hold the fire in place for more than half a day before the glass started to soften. It was another couple of hours after that, before they could start pushing it up the mountain again. The whole time the fire had to be fed. It took another two and a half days, before they were able to work the glass all the way up to the top of the mountain. When they didn't need the fire anymore. They just dropped it. A lot of the pieces of wood flamed out before they reached the ground. The glass handlers and the fire handlers held the top section of soft glass in place for around three hours before their Mother felt it had cooled down enough that they could leave it. Now the whole time they were doing this operation, none of the Nightsisters ate anything. They did drink water. Every time their Mother yelled water, two of the wood handlers would run for containers of water. They would make sure that Mother was refreshed first, before making the rounds to all the other Nightsisters. When the fire handlers dropped the burning wood, it was the wood handlers' responsibility to make sure that the burning wood was not too close together, to get really hot and start melting the glass at the base of the mountain, and they had to keep it away from the base of the scaffolding. One of the wood handlers ran to the village to let the cooks know that the Nightsisters would be feasting in a few hours. The Nightsisters were famished, and ate their fill. Then they all went to bed, and slept for 18 hours straight. The next morning they could not help but admire their new Glass Mountain. It looked like it was on fire when the sunlight struck it first thing in the morning."

"When they made their way to the top of the mountain, they found that every building suffered heat and fire damage. All the grain they had stored was now oven roasted. They tore apart all their old buildings except the granary, since it was still full. Mother remembered all the extra sandstone blocks she had the slaves produce. Now it was time to rebuild according to their extravagant needs. They built their new Temple first, making sure it had everything that a dark side force user would want to meet their needs, and the place for their entertainment. Including the well secured rings for securing slaves' hands and feet, for their beatings. They all wanted larger quarters than before, but there was only so much room, and so many blocks to build things. Mother decided that their eating area, and the kitchen should have first priority. Then they would have an idea on how large they could build their residence, and the nursery. They decided that the slaves could build their residence out of wood and rubble from the previous buildings."

"When they dismantled the scaffolding, they stored the swamp cane on top of the mountain. They found it to be just as strong as what the clan Sisters used for their fighting sticks. But much lighter. The Nightsisters that had stolen swords when they left their former clans. Liked how easy it was to attach their swords to the end of the fighting stick made out of swamp cane. Now they could do battle with a clan Sister riding on their Rancor. They heated the sandstone blocks on the inside of each building, to give the interiors a glass glaze, and to use the glass to bond each block to the others. From when they started the glass fires, until they moved back to the mountain top, was just over two months. The villagers were glad to see them go, so that they could start moving back into their homes."

"The Clan Mothers were not surprised to see that no one from the Nightsisters showed up to talk about compensation for all the damage they did. They asked the political exile, who gained his freedom, to come and explain everything he had done for the Nightsisters. The town's people made sure that he understood, that he cannot say no to the Clan Mothers. He told the Clan Mothers that he wanted to perform the same demonstration for them, as he had done for the Nightsisters. He had asked the town if he could have one of their blaster rifles. When he told them that he was planning on draining its power source they said no. They told him to ask the Clan Mothers if they could supply him with one. So when he came before the Clan Mothers, he explained to them what he needed for his presentation. The Clan Mother of the Red Hills Clan sent one of her Sisters to retrieve a blaster rifle from the pirate ship that is being used by predators as a den. The Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan sent one of her Sisters to the sandstone quarry to see if she could find a chunk of sandstone close to the size of the blocks that the Nightsisters were using. When they returned, he was handed an old filthy blaster rifle covered in animal droppings. He suspected it would not have as many shots as the one the Nightsisters gave him. The sandstone block that was brought back was rejected by the Nightsisters, because a corner had broken off, but it was perfect for the demonstration. When he asked how long the blaster rifle had been laying where she got it from, he was surprised that it still worked when he turned it on. The demonstration was a success, and the Clan Mothers were able to handle the hot blob of glass he had just produced. He told them what he had told the Nightsisters to do, in order to get his freedom. He told them all the sources that he knew of, for the wood they used for their fire. The Clan Mothers sent Sisters to check all the tree groves in the town's territory. The town's people were upset that they would not be able to harvest any hardwood from the groves, until the trees re-established themselves. They relied on the hardwood from the groves to make their kegs and barrels, that they stored their ale, and wine, and distilled drinks in. They would have to rely on using animal skins, for the next few years, like the Red Hills Clan did."

"When one of the political exiles heard that they had made glass. He asked if he could make some more. He had always been fascinated by the art of glass blowing, and he wanted to give it a try. The Clan Mothers agreed to let him try, since he would need to go on to their territories to harvest the raw resources he would need. He had one of the clans blacksmith fashion him a long metal tube because he remembered that the glass blowers blew into a blob of glass at the end of a long tube. When he almost burnt his hands and lips, he remembered they were not using a metal tube."

"The Clan Mother of the Great Canyon Clan kept tabs on the glass blower's progress. He was getting better but his progress was slow. The town's people did help him harvest wood, because they also needed it for cooking. One day she approached him, and suggested he move to their village. They had all the resources he needed close at hand, and she had people who were willing to work with him, and learn from him. He quickly agreed, because the hardest thing he found was finding people who would work with him on a consistent basis. The town's people did help him, but it was always someone new, and he had to spend a lot of time explaining what he wanted them to do, before he started, because it was hard to talk with a tube in your mouth. The Clan Mother of the Great Canyon Clan let the other Clan Mothers know that if they had artistic people interested in learning glass blowing, she would welcome them. Her strategy paid off. She was able to establish a dual purpose village right next to the resources the glass blower needed. Because he now had experience in establishing two workshops. He was able to custom design a facility to fit his needs and that of all his new apprentices. It was also a farming village. She had convinced a small settlement to join her clan, and raise Brackaset, and make cheese. She had her own people from her main village move there to grow the crops. Hers was now the third clan to start a secondary village, and the first one to establish an industry."

"When the Nightsisters' Mother did not come to the Council of Mothers, the Singing Mountain Clan's Mother outlined the steps she was going to take, to force the Nightsisters to pay restitution. The Council approved her taking their entire grain harvest, but no more, even though she wanted to take all their cheese for a couple months as well. They consented to let her take the cheese that was designated as going to the mountain, while she was there for the harvest. But she was not to take the cheese from the village people that they made for their own consumption. (She never intended on taking their cheese.)"

"When the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan returned to her main village, she called all the trades' people together for a meeting. She needed a way to transport large quantities of grain quickly. Because the longer it sat by the village, the greater was the chance the Nightsisters would try to steal it. The carpenters, blacksmiths, and cobblers, all got together and designed the first Rancor cart. It is a two wheeled cart with one leg at the front to hold it flat while a Rancor was not pulling it. When the Rancor was pulling it, it would be sloped upwards at the front. They built the first one, and the Clan Mother, and Herd Mother, both checked it out. When the Herd Mother allowed herself to be strapped in the harness, she found that she hardly noticed she was attached to the cart. It did not hinder her motion in anyway. The Clan Mother noticed that the Sister could still sit on the Rancor's back while it was attached to the carts. So they both gave their approval to build a half dozen more. When harvest time came for the Nightsisters' village, they were quite surprised to see that all the Clan Sisters of Singing Mountain Clan showed up. The clan Sisters told the Nightsisters that had shown up to supervise the harvest. That because their Mother did not show up at the Council of Mothers as she promised, to negotiate reimbursing the Singing Mountain Clan. The Council of Mothers agreed to let the Singing Mountain Clan take their entire harvest. They also warned the Nightsisters that if they were found on the lowlands by any of them during the harvest. Their Clan Mother has given them permission, to give them a death match challenge."

"The Nightsisters' Mother was furious with the Singing Mountain Clan. They always managed to find some way to get her upset. She thought that because the clan Sisters were soft, they would leave enough grain for the village people to live on until the next harvest. They would just need to hunt more to supplement what they were not getting from the village. Two nights later, one of her Nightsisters returned to say that her hunting partner was dead. The Singing Mountain Clan was serious about the death match challenge. They had climbed up to the lowlands to do some hunting. They didn't know where the clan Sisters came from, but they suddenly appeared. She was still hidden in the bushes, so they did not seem to see her. But her partner was caught out in the open. She tried to run away. But the clan Sisters grabbed her by the force, and would not let her leave. One of them threw her a fighting stick for her to defend herself. While another Sister climbed off of her Rancor to challenge her. Her partner tried to burn her opponent with dark force lightning, but she shielded herself, and the other Sisters were able to combine their abilities to place a shield around themselves and all the Rancor, so the lightning would not hit them. Her partner next tried a fireball, which her opponent easily diffused with wind. The Sister taunted her partner, telling her that she could have sent the fireball back at her, but the undergrowth is too dry, and would have caught fire from her burning body. Her partner had no choice, but to pick up the fighting stick, and attack her opponent. At first it seemed they were evenly matched, but it turned out the clan Sister was just gauging her skill level. Then she would attack by first smashing her fighting stick against the fingers of her partner. Her partner would open herself up by trying to protect her fingers, which allowed the Sister to hit her with hard body shots. The match lasted for a while. She could see her partner's body starting to showing bruising on her arms and legs. Probably on her sides and back as well. Finally the Sister showed her mercy, and caught her in the neck with a death blow. The Sister dragged her partner's body by her hair to the west trail leading down to the swamp. (The trail closest to the sandstone quarry.) The Sister threw her body using the force so that it landed at the base of the trail. She snuck down and retrieved her partner's body, and brought it back to the mountain. Her Mother had her bring it into the temple, where they removed her clothing. Sure enough she had bruising up and down her side and back. When they examined her fingers, they could see that a number of them had been broken, the finger bones were actually crushed. The Nightsisters were allowed to remove anything they wanted from the body, with the earrings being the first to go. Then they called in a couple of slaves, and told them to go throw the body on the trash heap. None of the Nightsisters dared to climb up to the lowlands during the harvest, except near the quarry where they continued up to the midlands. They figured that with most of the Singing Mountain Clan on the lowlands. The midlands was the safe place for hunting. The Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan warned the villagers' that when harvest is over they would be leaving no grain behind. The Brackaset would be their only source of food."

"Because the village had three swamp Rancor. Two that used to be used at the quarry and one in the village. The Clan Mother had some of her hunting Rancor teach the three Rancor hunting techniques for when two or three Rancor hunt together. Because they were swamp Rancor, the only time they encountered another Rancor was to mate, or to fight over a kill. If they were really hungry, it would be a fight to the death. So they did not know how to hunt together. During harvest the Clan Mother let them practise hunting in the lowlands. But they knew that when the harvest was over, they would have to hunt in the swamps like before, because the Nightsisters were bad. Only now they knew how to hunt together."

"The Clan Mother was very impressed with the way the Rancor carts worked. After the village's harvest was over, the Clan Mother sent some of the grain and a couple of wheels of cheese to the town, and let them keep one cart. The town's people saw how useful the cart was right away, and knew they would have to petition the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan for more, for when she came for the next Council of Mothers."

"The villagers sent a group of people to the mountain to petition the Nightsisters' Mother for grain to eat until the next harvest, to make their ale, and to plant in the fields. The Nightsisters' Mother was surprised that the Singing Mountain Clan had not left them any grain. They told her that the only thing they left them was the Brackaset, and warned them that the next time the Nightsisters wanted to behave foolishly, they would be taking even those. (The Singing Mountain Clan had not said that, but the villagers thought they should have.) The Nightsisters' Mother saw that the Singing Mountain Clan had more backbone than she gave them credit for. She led the people to the granary and told them to take what they can carry. The people knew as soon as the granary was opened, that something did not smell right. They reached in and grabbed some grain and rubbed it in their hands to remove the husk. Then they tasted it. They told the Mother that they can't use this grain for planting, because it had no life in it. They did not know if they could even use it to make the Rancor's breakfast. They could not malt the grain to use it in ale production. So any ale they make will be weak. They did not know if the Brackaset would eat it, which means milk production and cheese production would by way down. (They did not feed grain to the Brackaset, except on rare occasions. They just wanted any excuse not to send cheese to the mountain until next harvest. They will have to be careful to hide their cheese, so the Nightsisters don't find it.) Mother asked how much grain they would need to plant the fields and to malt for their ale. The villagers explained that they plant four types of grain, each with a slightly longer growing season than the others, because they just can't harvest all of their fields in a couple of days. The grains they use in most of their cooking and ale making is usually a blend of the grains, but there are some meals that require a specific grain. They named four common meals, and the grain specific to each meal. Now the Nightsisters' Mother understood why the cooks had not made those meals for a long time. All the grains in their granary were mixed together. It was the village that stored their grains separately. So the cooks depended on the grain coming from the village, to have the right grains for the right meals. She knew that in the future they will need to build separate granaries for each grain. She asked the villagers how much time, do they have before the next planting? They told her that the fields should be ready in a month. They did not think she would be interested in knowing how they fertilize their fields."

Krillgan asked the Captain, how did they fertilized their fields?

He told them that the people in the town and villages, dig latrines. Where the people go to the washroom. They don't have indoor plumbing, and waste disposal systems. The town and larger villages would have his' and hers' latrines. When the latrines are full they move them to the next holes that they have dug, and cover the last ones with dirt. After harvest, they dig up all of their old latrines, and spread the rich soil mixture on all the fields. When the Rancor plow the fields, they mix the rich soil, fertilizer, into the ground to provide the nourishment that the grain needs to grow. Krillgan remembered how bad the bathroom smelt after his father used it, and asked if everything smelled bad?

The Captain said that the latrines smelt, but you quickly get used to it. The old latrines would smell if they were still fresh, and not covered by dirt. The old latrines that they dig up for the fields, don't smell unless they get wet. So if it rains between harvest and planting, the whole village stinks. But once the Rancor have plowed it into the ground for planting, it does not seem to smell even if it rains.

"The Nightsisters' Mother sent the Nightsisters out to each settlement to get some grain for planting, and to make ale. She gave them sacks she found in the kitchen. Which none of them knew why they were even there? She told them to use whatever means were necessary to get the settlers full cooperation, and to keep the different types of grain separate. The Nightsisters chose to use extortion."

Krillgan squeezed his father's shoulder, and asked him what extortion was? The Captain felt embarrassed because he had used a big word again. Chitrah told him that the Nightsisters had the people of the settlement cooperate by threatening them with physical violence. Just like they had the Rancor to cooperate by showing him a little dark force lightning. That is what extortion means.

"The Nightsisters threatened to burn all the people in the settlement, if they did not get any grain. To the people of the settlement the amount of grain the Nightsisters wanted was not very much. They probably would have given it to them if they just would have asked. To the Nightsisters, just asking is too much like begging, and they did not want anyone to think that they were begging. So when they got what they wanted, they still burnt one or two of the adults with dark force lightning. When clan Sister patrols happened by a settlement just after they were hit by the Nightsisters, they could sense something was wrong. When they entered a home, quite often they would find the people inside crying, because they did not know how to treat this type of burn, and they did not know if the person could work anymore. In a settlement everyone needed to work together if they all were to survive. It was only in the larger settlements that they could afford to let someone rest if they were sick or injured. In a small settlement, even if you were sick or injured you had to keep working. Others depended on you. So when the clan Sisters saw the injured people. They knew right away what the cause was. They would get the injured person up onto a Rancor to get them to a healer. If there were only two Sisters in the patrol, one would take all the injured people back to their healers. While the other would go chasing after the Nightsisters. If there were four Sisters to a patrol they would split up, two and two. When a single clan Sister caught up to a couple of Nightsisters, this was no ordinary challenge. The Nightsisters deserved to die. The smart Nightsister would grab all the grain, and leave her companion to fight, and maybe get away. Foolish Nightsisters would both try and fight the better armed, angry clan Sister, on a Rancor. The Nightsisters lost over one third of their sisters because of this. But they got all of the grain they needed. So the Nightsisters' Mother counted it as a success."

"Two things changed with the clans because of this. They started sending out Sisters alone on patrol so that they could cover more territory. The Singing Mountain Clan started training all of their people to use the bow and arrow, and fighting sticks (in case they encounter pirates). And sent them out four or five to a group to accompany a Sister. That way if they encounter a couple of better armed Nightsisters, the militia archers could harass the Nightsisters with arrows, while their Sister engaged them at close range. To the Sisters this meant the difference between, coming out of the fight with a major injury, our coming out of a fight with only a couple of scratches. The other clans soon adopted this patrol tactic."

"At the next Council of Mothers, the safety of settlements was again an important issue. The Clan Mothers asked every political exile to come and talk with them. They wanted to figure out how best to keep the pirates from attacking the settlements. Than they would have to determine a strategy to deal with the Nightsisters. The Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan believed the Glass Mountain could be conquered, but it might cost the lives of the first few Sisters that made it to the top. From the information the exiles shared. The Clan Mothers understood that the chief sensor the pirates and slavers relied upon, was the infrared. When they spotted a large number of blips, they would approach it to determine if it was just a herd, or if it indicated the presence of man. They found that the infrared could not penetrate that deep into the ground. A meter to a meter and a half, should be enough dirt to block a signal. Also a freshly planted field gave off a distinctive rectangular pattern for the first month, because of all the organic activity happening in the soil. After that it was not visible. They also found out why the Frenzied River Clan had never been attacked. The ground in their territory was in transition from midland to highland. Their fields were much smaller because of that, but they had more of them to compensate. It would take an expert pilot, to safely land a large ship in the daylight, much more difficult at night. So they would be passed over, because there were other, easier, targets available. The Council of Mothers asked the Clan Mothers of the Singing Mountain Clan, and the Red Hills Clan, to visit every settlement. To explain to them what options they had available to prevent pirate attacks. If they could not be prevented. That they should find a safe place to hide until help arrived. The Clan Mothers felt that the people of the settlements already trusted them, so they would know that they are not trying to trick them into moving. Some of the settlements decided to dig into cliff faces that where not too far away. One settlement decided to dig into the base of a hill, even though they were warned about the potential of flooding, if there was a major rainfall in the area. Which is why the Red Hills Clan builds on top of hills. Most of the settlements opted to move closer to a clan village. They were told how to build a double trapdoor safe room, under their dwelling. And reminded not to use it to store vegetables. The way the double trapdoor worked. Is that there would be a trap door in the floor of the home. Chances are the pirates or slavers would find it. There would be another trapdoor below it that was kept open, holding back some dry loose soil. With the safe room beneath it. The idea being that when you closed the second trapdoor. The dry soil would cover it, so it cannot be seen when the first trapdoor is opened. So whoever opened it would think it was used to store vegetables. The reason they were not allowed to store vegetables in this room. Was because if one spoiled, it would consume all the air, and the people would suffocate in the room. Clan Sisters would know that pirates had landed, because they were close enough. By using the double trapdoors, Sisters would have enough time to get to the settlement and kill all the pirates before the people were discovered. The settlements that moved closer into clan territory knew that they were asked to live where the clan hoped to one day build a village. If their descendants were not comfortable living within a clan, the clan would let them know where they were planning on building their next village site, and would help them move. If they chose to stay, they would be accepted as part of the clan. One large settlement asked the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan if they could move to her territory. They had kept in touch with the family that chose to be part of her village, and be in charge of the Brackaset. They have never regretted their move, and the settlement would feel more comfortable living near a good friend. The Clan Mother told them that they were a large enough group. That she would prefer to set them up as a village right away. With a palisade, Rancor, and Sisters. They agreed. So the Singing Mountain Clan had their second farming village before the two smallest clans had their first one."

The Captain stopped for a moment, then asked them a question. "Which group, do you think, has killed more Nightsisters, than any other group?" They all answered, "The Singing Mountain Clan." The Captain told them they were wrong. It was a trick question. "The group that has killed more Nightsistres than any other group, is in fact the Nightsisters. They don't like it when things get too crowded on their mountain. Everyone is always in a bad mood. Very irritable. Fights often break out amongst Nightsisters. Rather than expanding the accommodations. The Nightsister Mother allows death match challenges. She hopes it will weed out the weaker Nightsisters, and promote the stronger ones. What usually ends up happening, is both the strongest and weakest get eliminated. The strongest like to show off, so they will pick on the weakest right away. They will do two, maybe three challenges right away. Before they get a chance to rest, a smart but mediocre Nightsister sees that she has a chance to improve her standing in their Sisterhood. So she will challenge the stronger, but tired Nightsister. If she can eliminate her convincingly. Then no one will dare challenge her. If she struggles to kill her opponent, than some will challenge her right away, trying to do what she did. In the end, the older Nightsisters are entertained, and the smarter ones survive."

"Now the Council of Mothers monitored the Republic expansion through space, by the number and frequency of political exiles that were dumped on their planet. There was on exile that arrived with his wife and two personal servants. He was the perfect picture of nobility. He thought he was head and shoulders above everyone else, when he was really only average height. His wife the perfect noble woman, which is why she agreed to accompany her husband into exile, rather than stay home and raise her children, which she considered the servants job. The two personal servants volunteered to accompany their master. They knew him since he was a little child, and loved him dearly. Their master loved them just as much. Which made his wife secretly jealous. Because she thought her husband did not love her at all. He treated her well, and had even gotten used to her company. But she was for show, just like everything else in his life, except these two servants. Unfortunately for the two servants, they had no force sensitivity. Within a month they were in tremendous pain, and going insane. One of the other exiles handed him a knife. He told him if he truly loved his servants, he would end their suffering, because there is no cure. He did love them. So he ended their suffering. His wife was on the verge of hysteria. Not because his servants were now dead. But because it now fell on her to look after him, and she had no one to look after her. He insisted that their bodies be buried, as was the custom on his world. Some of the town's people helped him move a large rock near the escarpment, overlooking the ocean. The bodies were sewn shut in a simple cloth, and the nobleman helped dig their grave. After placing their bodies in the grave, and giving a moving eulogy about how there love touched him in every aspect of his life. He then helped cover them. For the next month in public he kept a brave face. But he would cry himself to sleep every night. His wife did her best to comfort him. In her mind he was a good man as far as noble men goes. He never once mistreated her.

"The nobleman often meditated on his eulogy to his servants, and realised that the words could not really be applied to him. They had shown him every day that they loved him, and not because he was their master. But because they saw something good in him, and wanted others to see it too. As a noble he often wondered what they saw in him. Then it dawned on him. Because he was capable of loving them, he was capable of loving others. He swore that their legacy would be his legacy. That night before climbing into bed he got down on one knee and asked his wife to forgive him. She was quite surprised by his odd behaviour and asked him if he was okay. He told her that he was more than okay, he finally understood what was important in life, and asked again if she would forgive him? She asked him, why she needed to forgive him? He told her that he was her husband, and he has never treated her the way a man with good character should treat his wife. She asked him, how a man with good character should treat his wife? He told her that a man of good character should love his wife. This answer surprised her, more than his asking an apology. She asked, if that meant he loved her? He confessed that he did not yet love her, which is why he had to apologise, but someday he would, and when he did he would tell her. She quickly accepted his apology, and told him she was looking forward to that day."

"He was a much nicer man to be around after that. The whole town noticed. He tried to help wherever he could, but they kept telling him to leave the hard physical work to them, they needed him for his sage advice. So he tried hard to be what they asked for. When someone had a problem they were trying to figure out. They started coming to him. He would listen carefully to them, then ended up telling them he was not sure what they should do, but he was sure they would figure it out. They thanked him for listening. Later they would come back and tell him that his advice worked. One night before falling asleep, he turned to his wife, and told her that he loved her, and kissed her on the forehead. She told him that she loves him too, and kissed him on the lips. Later she told the women in the town, that as a little girl she dreamed that she would marry the man she loved. It took coming to Dathomir, for her to find out that she did. Later a large ship came for them, to take them back home, his exile was over. The man who had sent him away, now needed him. He thought it would be best for his planet if they joined the Republic. They would not accept a dictatorship. He needed him back as his Prime Minister, to show them that he was no longer a dictator. The wife at first was reluctant to return, because she was afraid that she would lose her husband. He assured her it would never happen, and she had children that needed to be raised as people with character, not as a nobleman's children. That convinced her that it was safe to go back. He asked the soldiers on the ship to exhume the bodies of his servants. He wanted to rebury them on his estate back home. The soldiers dug but could find no bodies, all they could find were rags made from a synthetic fibre. An elder from one of the clans happened to be in town, she had never seen a starship up close before. She told the nobleman, that Dathomir had claimed them. That meant that their legacy would live on. With tears in his eyes he thanked her. Like his wife, he too was worried that going back, would change him back. Now he felt that the change in his heart was stronger."

"After that the frequency of political exiles arriving on Dathomir dropped dramatically. The Nightsisters now depended on their non-force user offspring to be their slaves. They would not kill off their slaves if it became too crowded. They just moved them to their village. They knew that their non-force user offspring, could produce force user offspring. These offspring tended to be powerful in the force. They promised the female slaves, that if they produce a force using daughter, they would never again be treated as slaves. They did not really tell them what fate would await them. The new Nightsisters' Mothers, when they read back through their history, believed that the early generations of Nightsisters were too weak in the force, because they were not fully committed to the dark side. They site the way the first few generations protected the healer they called mother. Now if a non-force using slave, bears a force user daughter. To show her commitment to the dark side, at some point she will need to sacrifice her mother, by killing her."

The Captain decided to end the history, with a story one of the Singing Mountain Clan's Sister told him. "One day while on patrol, a clan Sister and her militia encounter a Nightsister on a midland Rancor that she had bonded with. They were out hunting on Singing Mountain Clan territory. The clan Sister challenged the Nightsister to a dual. Because the clan Sister had a Dathomirite sword on the end of her fighting stick, and the Nightsister only had a regular sword on the end of her swamp cane. The clan Sister promised not to activate her sword, because it would give her an unfair advantage. The Nightsister ignored the four members of the militia, and accepted the challenge. Before they actually started fighting, the clan Sister's Rancor stepped too close to the cliff, and the ground they were on gave way. The clan Sister instinctively grabbed the cliff's edge. But when she looked down and saw her Rancor heading for the ocean, and a big fish waiting to swallow him. She knew he needed her help, and pushed of the cliff to go into the ocean after him. The Nightsister foolishly went to the edge of the cliff to watch her opponent's demise. She ignored the force warning her to keep an eye on the militia. The male in the group had strung an arrow in his bow, and fired it at the Nightsister. The Nightsister did not know that these were not ordinary militia. They were part of the Singing Mountain Clan's new secret weapon. They were Rangers. Rangers are the best woodsmen on Dathomir. When they travel through the forests, the Nightsisters only detect them as creatures of the forest, not as humans. They are also the most accurate bowmen on Dathomir. This group had one man, and three women. The Nightsister realised that she should not have ignored the forces warning, when the man's arrowhead entered her skull just behind her left ear. By the time the arrow's head exited out through her right eye socket, popping the eyeball out of her head, it did not matter. Because she was dead, and fell forward off of her Rancor into the ocean. The clan Sister formed an air shield around her, then sucked it close to her body so that she could penetrate into the ocean, as deep and as quick as possible. Because she was using the force her Dathomirite sword cut the water cleanly for her entry. Now Rancor are not a creature to give up without a fight. Even though he had trouble breathing, and could not see anything. His natural instinct was to shred anything soft around him. To a Rancor, everything inside the fish was soft. The big fish was in distress, with the Rancor shredding its insides. The fish's instincts from when it was small, was to head to deeper water when threatened, and it felt threatened. The clan Sister saw the fish, and reached out with the force to grab it. At the same time she expanded the air shield back to its natural shape. The air bubble was like an anchor to the fish. It knew it could not make deep water so it headed to the bottom instead. By the time she had pulled herself up to the mouth of the fish, it was already dead, her Rancor had killed it. She reached out and touched her Rancor, to let him know she was coming. She squeezed through the mouth of the fish, and kept pushing herself further in. She found her Rancor waiting for her, but having trouble breathing. She forced her way up onto his back, with shredded fish inners pushing against her. When she got high enough on his back, her air shield encompassed his head, so he could start breathing normally again. By this time her sense of smell was totally dead, making the situation more bearable. When she finally got to where she wanted to be. She told her Rancor to claw his way out. Because of the blue light of the sword, he shredded everything in front of him, until they came out through the belly of the fish. Because they were so deep, and the blue light from the sword did not penetrate very far, they could not tell up from down. It wasn't until they settled into the black ooze on the bottom, that they knew where down was. Fortunately it was not a thick sticky ooze. The clan Sister reached out with the force to see if she could find life that was known to her, because that would be where land is. When she felt she detected it, she pointed the sword. Her Rancor knew that that was the way to go."

"Now the Rangers found themselves in a situation that their Sister had trained them for. An angry Rancor had just lost the Nightsister it was bonded to, and it wanted revenge. They all knew the next few steps would happen very quickly, so they had to be loaded and ready for every target that presented itself. First, they shot out the Rancor's eyes, because that was the easiest first target to hit. This caused the Rancor to roar. With the Rancor's mouth open, they shot their arrows at the fleshy part at the back of the throat. This caused the Rancor to close its mouth, and flare its nostrils so it could breath. With their real target exposed, the Rangers shot through the nostrils into its sinuses, causing them to bleed. Because of the presence of its own blood bleeding in its sinuses, it lost all sense of smell. The most sensitive of its senses. Even without its eyes it could still use its nose to track them down. Now it was truly blind. Now they could take advantage of its hearing. Two of them went to the edge of the cliff and started yelling. The Rancor turned to them and roared because it knew where they were. This caused it to take another arrow in the mouth. It charged at its antagonists, hoping to crush them with its sheer size, until it ran out of real estate, and felt itself falling. The Rangers did not believe that the more than a hundred meter fall down to the surface of the ocean killed it. Rancor are more resilient than that. When they saw the large fish that swallowed it, calmly swim away, they felt that it had just given up on life."

"The clan Sister noticed that a number of fish where attracted to the blue light of her sword. Thankfully they were also attracted to each other. She could feel them fighting, both in the force, and in the turbulence in the water. Her Rancor ignored them, and kept walking in the direction the sword was pointing."

"On top of the cliff, the Rangers were discussing what they should do. Two of them thought they should head to their closest village to report what had happened. The other two said that their Sister did not fall, she dove after her Rancor. They should wait for them to come back. The two doubters decided that it would not hurt to wait, because they cannot change anything by leaving. Besides it would be really embarrassing to report a person dead, only to have them show up alive a little later. So they sat at the edge of the forest and waited. That way they would be invisible to any hostile wildlife in the area."

"The Rancor knew it needed to climb the cliff face when it reached its base. Climbing it underwater, where they hardly weighed anything was both easy and quick. When they reached the surface the, the Sister released the air shield. Instead she transferred her force strength to her Rancor, to help make the climb easier. The only thing they had to be careful about is the cliff face breaking off, sending them back down to the ocean."

"The Rangers suddenly smelt this overpowering dead fish smell. Then they saw a Rancor hand digging its claws into the ground at the top of the cliff. Then they saw the heads of their Sister and her Rancor appear over the top of the cliff, and they all stood up. The Rancor clawed its way up, and only stood up when it felt that it was a safe distance away from the edge of the cliff. The Sister jumped off of the Rancor, she wanted to hug all of them. But they backed up quickly, and told her she needed to bathe first. She laughed because she forgot that her sense of smell was dead. She could only tell how bad it was by the looks on their faces."

"There was a stream just a short way into the forest, she told her Rancor to follow the man, because he was a beastmaster, and she would follow the women, because they need to help her bathe. When they came to the stream the beasmaster had the Rancor roll around in the stream, but it did not diminish the smell. He figured that he would have to rub the Rancor down with the lush green underbrush growing in the forest to help get rid of some of the smell. He took his tunic off and hung it on a branch. There was no need to get it wet. He grabbed some large green leaves and started rubbing the Rancor's skin. While he did that he noticed that the Rancor's skin had become splotchy. Like someone had spilt bleach all over his body, but not evenly. He also noticed that small patches of fabric would suddenly appear floating in the stream, and was carried along with the flow of the water. One of the female Rangers showed up and grabbed his tunic. She said their Sister needed it. He yelled after her, only if she promises to keep him warm at night. Now he knew where the patches of fabric were coming from. Whatever was causing the discoloration in the Rancor's skin, must also be causing the fabric in her clothing to breakdown. He used most of the underbrush to rub down the Rancor's body. He had the Rancor roll in the stream again. The Rancor still smelt bad, but not as bad as before. They went to find the women. When they appeared, he did not notice that their Sisters skin was also splotchy. All he noticed was how she looked with just his tunic on. She complained that it was too short. He said that it looked just fine. The women Rangers laughed because they could see the way his body reacted to what he saw."

The Captain asked them if they had any questions about Dathomir. Andriel asked him if he could describe what the women wore on Dathomir. The Captain just said that they wore clothes. Andriel asked him if he could be more specific. He told her that when he was looking at the women, he was not paying too much attention to the design of the clothing. Just on how well they wore it on their body. Andriel first hrumphed, then she laughed. What a typical man. He did say that he believed that most Sisters either wore leather pants, or some leather leggings, so they did not chaff their skin when riding a Rancor. He did think the other women wore either dresses or skirts. He could tell from Andriel's face that it did not help answer her question. When they had no more questions, the Captain told them that there is one more thing they need to be aware of. "The Sisters very much believe in prophecy, they will listen closely to what their Clan Mothers say. They will also record the ramblings of their elders, just in case they turn out to be prophecy that they could not understand at the time. All the Sisters from every clan believe that they are entering a new age. A time of unprecedented peace and prosperity. We would call it their golden age." Krillgan asked if they know what happens after the golden age. The Captain said they do. "The clans and the Sisters will be no more." When he saw the look of shock on their faces, he elaborated. They believe that the age will end with the rise of a Warlord/Princess, who will be loved by all the clans. She will unite the Sisters from all the clans to defend the planet from an invader. There will be a fierce battle that will last a number of days, but in the end the Warlord and the Sisters will prevail. Instead of respecting them, their enemy will be terrified of them, and rain down fire from heaven to destroy all the Sisters, and will suffer loss in their own fleet because of it." Krillgan asked him, "If they know they will be destroyed in the end. Why won't they hide after the battle?" "The prophecy states that if they do not accept their fate, the enemy will rain down fire on the whole planet just to destroy them. If they accept their fate, the planet will be spared. Even the Rancor that are friends to the people will be hunted down and killed." Krillgan asked, if they know how the darkness ends? The Captain said that there is a prophecy that says, "A daughter of Dathomir will return, and the clans will be reborn. Humans and Rancor will work together again." They thanked the Captain for sharing what he knew about Dathomir.

They retired to Andriel's cabin to discuss what they should do now. Mainly the Parents talked and Krillgan listened. Chitrah told Andriel that none of their clothes will work for this planet. They are heading to a pre-industrialized world. Their clothes are to fine and too complex for this world. Andriel agreed, she loved all of her outfits, sadly she won't be able to wear them anymore. Now both Andriel and Chitrah had worked on items for archaeologists that were going to go explore ruins. They both agreed that that was the type of clothing they need for this planet. Andriel set about designing an outfit for herself. Chitrah helped her design an outfit for him and Krillgan. Chitrah took careful measurements of not just their feet, but of their legs as well. He wanted to sew them all rugged boots. The go anywhere type. He thought that they should come up to just below the knee. He also made some shoe versions of the boots, because if they will be spending most of their time in a village, the boots will be impractical for everyday life. He also made them all sandals, in case that was the common footwear for Dathomir. Andriel made herself an archaeologist's pant suit that came down to just below the knee, so she could show off the new boots Chitrah made her. She made it out of plain materials. One was a light kaki brown. Another was a medium kaki green. She also did a dark kaki brown, and a military grey. She had enough material in these colours to make outfits for all of them. They were also strong, durable, fabrics. Easy to clean, and would hold their shape well.

The crew asked Chitrah, if he had time, could he make them all another pair of deck shoes? They started wearing their new clothes and boots right away to break them in before they arrived on Dathomir. The crew started calling Krillgan, little Chitrah, which he loved, because he looked so much like his father in his new outfits. Since Andriel and Chitrah were constantly washing the new outfits. By the time they landed on Dathomir, they had lost their new clothes sheen, and were very comfortable to wear.

Now the Captain never told the crew that they are going to Dathomir. In the ship computer's log it is listed as Kindell's world. After the Captain gave his crew and Krillgan, their promised story Andriel pulled him aside and asked him about it. He invited Andriel and Chitrah into his cabin.

"Kindell was the love of my life. She always seemed to know when I was coming to Dathomir. She was a Sister of the Singing Mountain Clan. I had even proposed to her. I was ready to give up my ship, and live with her on Dathomir. But she turned me down, not because she did not love me. She just told me that our destinies are not the same. She told me that I was someday going to do something important for Dathomir, and that we should just enjoy the time we had together, while we can. The next time I came do Dathomir, she was not there to meet me. I went to the Singing Mountain Clan's compound, but they said she had not arrived yet. There was a runner resting there, she said that she would start running home to see if she could find someone who knew anything about her. She invited me to enjoy the hospitality of the compound until she ran back. I knew in the pit of my stomach that something was wrong. I was hoping to hear news, but at the same time dreading what I would hear. It was a while before the runner came back. By the look on her face, I knew she had bad news. She told me that Kindell was dead, she was killed by a Nightsister. My heart went numb, but I asked her to tell me what happened. Kindell thought her Rangers were running to slow, she wanted to get to town before my ship touched down. So she ran ahead with her Rancor. She was not her usual cautious self, and ran straight into a Nightsister's ambush. There was one Nightsister and eight militia archers, double their normal amount. So Kindell had to deal with the Nightsister, as well as her archers. Apparently the archers were able to harass her enough that she let her guard down, and the Nightsister was able to deal her a death blow. The Rangers arrived just as they were trying to kill her Rancor, because she was protecting Kindell's body. They had blinded one of her eyes and the Nightsister was trying to kill her with dark force lightning."

"When the Rangers showed up, the Nightsister must have thought that another Sister was with them because she fled. The Rangers killed all of the Nightsister's militia, before they could follow the Nightsister. The runner said that she had arrived their just as the Rangers finished securing her body to her Rancor, so that she could take her home. She expected that her Clan Mother would arrange for someone to come and get me. She asked that I wait in the compound, so it would be easy for them to find me. I went back to the ship and told them that I would be gone for a few days. Then I went back to the compound, and I cried. In the middle of the night a Sister shook me awake. She introduced herself as being Kindell's cousin, Allya. She told me that she had been hunting near the gate when she heard about Kindell, the runner had told her that I was in the compound waiting, so she decided to come for me, to take me to say my final goodbyes. She told me that her Rancor was not fresh, because they had been hunting. So even by giving her Rancor extra strength, it may still take more than 24 hours of riding to get us there. I told her I understood, and was grateful for her coming to get me. She climbed onto her Rancor first, then reached down and helped me get up behind her. I was surprised at how fast the Rancor was running, with Allya giving it extra strength. I probably would have enjoyed the ride if it was different circumstances. Instead I could only think of Kindell, and got her cousin's shoulder and back wet with my tears. I wasn't sobbing, or crying out loud, but I could not stop the tears. I think we stopped at every watering hole along the way, because she was afraid I would become dehydrated."

"It was the morning after, when we finally arrived at the main village. They had already laid out her body on the funeral pyre. They were just waiting for me to arrive and light it. She looked so beautiful and peaceful lying there. With the torch in my left hand I walked up to the pyre. I kissed the fingers on my right hand, then reached up with my right hand to touch my fingers against her lips, and said my goodbyes. I backed up a step and placed the torch in the wood near the bottom of the pile, than I backed up to where the other people were standing. I watched as the flames ascended, until her body disappeared behind a wall of flame, then I could watch no more."

"Allya introduced me to Kindell's mother, and other close members of her family. They all knew that I had proposed to her. They said that I made her the happiest woman in the clan. I asked them why she turned me down. Just like she knew when I was coming, she also knew that she would only spend a short time with me. To her that time was special. I tried not to cry when I told them that it was special to me too."

"I asked Allya to take be to Kindell's Rancor. The Rancor let us both approach. It had a bandage over one eye, and large bandages over the upper part of her body. The Rancor spoke to Allya, who spoke to me. She said that she knew me. I was the one who made her bondmate very happy, and now that she has met me, she will now have good memories of me. I asked Allya to thank the Rancor on my behalf, for protecting her bondmate's body, until help arrived. She told me that her bondmate fought very well, and the Nightsister was severely wounded. She wouldn't be surprised if they have already thrown her dead body off of their mountain. I thanked the Rancor for sharing this with me, and I hoped that she would be better soon. She told me that she would not be able to have another bondmate, all she could do now, is make little Rancor. I hoped that she had many opportunities to do so."

"When we left Allya told me that the Rancor really liked me, that maybe I was a beastmaster. I told her that the only beasts I've ever tamed were just women, but it was Kindell that tamed me. I spent the rest of the day with her family. They shared stories about Kindell's life. Stories I would have expected to hear at a wedding feast."

"The following day Kindell's cousin told me her Rancor was rested, she could take me back to town now. I told Allya that she did not need to rush the return trip, my crew would wait for me." Andriel asked if Madam knew this story. The Captain said that she does not know the story, because she does not know Dathomir. "She does know that I proposed marriage to a woman I loved, but that she died shortly after."

Andriel asked him if he had ever fulfilled Kindell's prophesy? Did he do something important for Dathomir? He told them that he was doing it right now. He knew, as soon as the elder on Manaan, asked that he take them. That they had to come to Dathomir. Andriel and Chitrah looked at each other. They had automatically held hands while they listened to his story. But they did not know how to respond to this. Captain Richard apologised for making them feel uncomfortable. They are good people, and they have already blessed so many people, even without being allowed to leave the ship. So of course, they are going to bless the people they meet on Dathomir. That's just who they are, which is why they are important to Dathomir. Andriel and Chitrah both felt better after the Captain explained it that way. Neither one felt that they were special people. Their son, on the other hand, was a special person.


	8. Chapter 8

©2016

Andriel told Krillgan some of the Captain's story, so he knew why it was called Kindell's World. It was also the reason the crew was told that they would be staying with Kindell's family, until the Captain felt it was time to move them somewhere else. Everything was packed and crated. The twin loom to the one Mrs. Radcliff has, was never removed from its crate, when the Captain purchased it for Andriel. Andriel packed up her old clothes, and Krillgan's old clothes with her sewing supplies. Chitrah packed his up with the shoemaker's supplies. When they landed next to the Town, the family went with the Captain to the trading post. He told the man in charge that they were going to the Singing Mountain Clan, and that they were already familiar with the journal. That's how the man knew they were staying. He asked the man what he had available as far as food supplies. They were planning on walking.

The man thought they were foolish. There are things out there that wanted to eat you. He told them that all he had was porridge cakes and cheese. He also had some empty wine skins that they could fill with water. Krillgan was very eager to try what the Rancor had for breakfast. The Captain arranged for them to have four different types of porridge cakes, even though he thought three would be enough. They were also given a good sized piece of cheese, and asked if they had anything to cut it. Andriel and Chitrah still had the stone knives the Togruta gave them. Most of the time they forgot they still had them. They told the Captain they were alright. Which made him raise his eyebrows and looked at them, because he never saw either one pack a knife. But they just smiled at him, so he left it at that. He asked the man if anyone has used his room since he had last been here. The man said no. So the Captain disappeared for a while, and came back with two sticks. He handed one to Andriel, and one to Chitrah, and called them walking sticks. Everyone in the room knew what they really were. He also told the man that his crew would be unloading some crates that belong to this family. The next time a caravan from the Singing Mountain Clan arrives, they should take the crates back with them. The crew was not happy that there were no porter druids to help them. Most of the crates were quite heavy. The family had decided to wear their kaki green outfits for the trip. Since green was the dominant colour everywhere they looked. Chitrah had made himself a medium brown leather hat. Andriel had made herself a similar hat out of dark khaki brown fabric, so it went with at least three of her outfits. When his parent's asked him which he preferred, he chose the leather hat, but asked that it be a little darker, so his father would not put it on by mistake. Andriel and Chitrah had collaborated together, to make backpacks for all of them. Chitrah had all of his clothes, and half of Krillgan's clothes, plus his electronics equipment bag in his backpack. The Captain had tried to dissuade him from taking it. Telling him that he had no place to plug it in, to charge it. Chitrah told him that it will charge off of the sun. Andriel told him that she can charge her computer off of Chitrah's. The Captain stopped trying to tell them what they should or should not take. They were the ones that had to live with their decisions. It was always easier to look back and decide what they should have done different. Andriel had her clothes, and the rest of Krillgan's clothes in her backpack, along with her computer, and her teas. They put the porridge cakes, and cheese in Krillgan's backpack. Andriel and Chitrah both carried a wine skin full of water. When they left, the man just shook his head. The Captain told him that they are more capable then they look. He pities the poor predator that stumbles across their path. The man still shook his head. Then they got down to business.

It was a lovely day for a walk, the sun was shining, but it wasn't too hot. They probably traveled too far, before they stopped to take their first break. Krillgan was eager to try a porridge cake. Andriel told him that he would probably be sick of them by the time they get to the main village of the Singing Mountain Clan. He suspected that he might, but he still wanted to try one. So Andriel broke a chunk off of one of the cakes, then broke that chunk into three, so they could all try it. Krillgan thought it tasted blander then he imagined. Chitrah told him to have some water, than try it. Krillgan had not realised he was so thirsty. Now when he tried the cake it tasted much better. Chitrah made sure everyone felt rested before moving on. The next time they rested they made a meal of it. They had been walking all morning, and now the sun was overhead. Krillgan would have preferred to have some juice with the cheese and porridge cake that his mother gave him. He wondered if they drank juice on this planet. Andriel made sure that her Togruta knife was properly cleaned and dried, after cutting the cheese, before she put it back in its hiding place. They had a lovely picnic. Chitrah reminded Krillgan that soon he would know the names of all the plants and trees they see around them, and if they had any healing properties, or if parts of them were edible. He surprised Krillgan, by picking a wildflower and eating it. He told Krillgan that he had smelt the flower before eating it. It had a nice sweet smell, not a sickly sweet scent. So he felt that it was safe to eat. Krillgan loved that his father would surprise him like that.

A short time after they started moving again, Krillgan stopped them. He told that there was a large creature grazing up ahead just beyond the top of the hill. He did not think that it would be friendly to them. The little creatures that were grazing near it would not bother them. Chitrah went ahead until he could see over the top of the hill. Sure enough there was a large creature up ahead on the trail grazing. It was about the size of a large transport truck. They found out later that it was called a Malkloc, and did not like any creature that walked on two legs. The Sisters believe that it thinks all two legged creatures are Rancor, because it has a simple brain. Rancor are the only creature large enough to kill, and it usually takes four of them to take one Malkloc down. Only good hunters can do that without being injured.

Chitrah had on idea, and counted all of the smaller creatures grazing near it. He went back to Andriel and Krillgan, and asked him how many small creatures were grazing near the big creature. Krillgan thought for a moment, and told his father six. Chitrah had only counted five. His son told him that he missed the one that was behind the big creature. Both parents were impressed that not only could he use the force to detect life, but he also had depth perception while doing it.

Both parents relied heavily on Krillgan's ability, especially when they had to go relieve themselves behind bushes. That would be a very awkward moment to encounter wildlife. What they did not know, was that when Krillgan sensed predators, he would use the force to warn them away. The predators would see the female human in the group, with a fighting stick, and automatically assume that she was the one to warn them away. The predators knew that if they did not heed the warnings of a Sister, they would die. So they left the family alone.

The family knew from the Captain's description that if they stayed to the right of the chain of mountains up ahead, but went left every time they came to a fork in the trail, they would end up at the main village of the Singing Mountain Clan. So they felt it was safe to leave the trail to go around the large creature undetected. At night, they slept on the ground under the trees, right next to each other for warmth. Krillgan still monitored the area around them while they slept. It became second nature to him. They always slept with Krillgan in the middle between both parents. They were always able to find a fresh source of drinking water, before their wine skins were both empty. They would always take that opportunity to wash and refresh themselves. They also found berry bushes along the way. The first time they found a bush, Chitrah made sure that Andriel tried it first. When she said it was okay, they all dug in. Some bushes held a lot, but never enough berries to fill a person. Some held very little and were a disappointment. There were different types, so Chitrah had to wait for Andriel or Krillgan to try it first. He knew the rule, "If it's sweet, it's alright to eat," but he did not know if the rule applied to Dathomir. If Krillgan was the first one to try a new type of berry, Chitrah had to watch him very carefully. If he tried to sneak more berries into his mouth, then Chitrah knew they were okay to eat. He would usually give his young son a bump, and call him a sneak, which always made Krillgan giggle. Usually when someone spotted a berry bush, they would take off running, to try and get their before anyone else. Andriel was almost as fast as Chitrah, because of their regular workouts. But they were both surprised that Krillgan could keep up with them. What none of them knew was that Krillgan was starting to use the force to help him stay close to his parents.

One time Chitrah yelled berries, then took off running, when the others caught up to him, they found him laughing. They were not happy with him. When he did it the next time, they realised why he was laughing. If he saw berries he would certainly not yell it out before he took off running. So they had to laugh at themselves, for allowing themselves to be tricked.

Usually after they cleaned up a bush they tried to find a source of water. So they could all wash their hands, and Krillgan's face usually needed a scrubbing. Usually they had to use their precious drinking water. Near the end of the trip, Krillgan realised, that his parents only ate the berries near the top off the bush, and left the rest for him. He knew they were doing it because they loved him. But why make him run? He knew his parents were naturally competitive, but that would not explain it. Then he realised that his parents wanted him to feel like he earned those berries. If something is important to you, then you have to work for it. Krillgan loved his parents!

On the third morning when they woke up, the sky was overcast. Krillgan mentioned to his parents that the air smelt different. Chitrah knew what his son was talking about, he could smell the extra moisture in the air too. Chitrah right away started looking for long sticks. Andriel started collecting large broad leaves. Krillgan was impressed that his parents looked like they knew what they were doing. Chitrah had quickly made a frame for a large lean-to, and asked Andriel if there were enough cross pieces of sticks for her to work with. She said there were enough, and started weaving the leaves onto the shelter, starting at the bottom. Chitrah had gone looking for firewood, because it was always colder when it rained. The shelter was finished, and Chitrah had a fire going when the rain started. Andriel and Krillgan quickly ran back to the shelter, with the firewood they had each collected. Chitrah had positioned some small rocks in the fire so that a pot could be placed on them to boil water. Andriel was very disappointed with herself, she had brought her teas, but forgot to bring a pot to make it in. Chitrah had found some small gourds while collecting firewood. He cut the top off of one, and handed it to Andriel, so that she could determine whether or not it was poisonous. She said it was okay, so he scrapped the inside of the gourd out, putting the insides on the fire, which produced a nice aroma. Andriel asked him to pass her one of the gourds. She wasn't sure she knew what Chitrah was doing, but she felt she had to do something, and copied what he did. After Chitrah had cleaned out the gourd he placed it near the fire, so the fire would harden the shell, and dry out the gourd. While he did that he started working on the last gourd, Krillgan just watched what his parents were doing. He had watched them build a rainproof shelter in no time, and the rain was coming down pretty hard, and it still did not leak. His mother had even sealed up the sides of the shelter with leaves, because there was usually a strong wind with the rain. His father had built a fire just inside the shelter where it was out of the rain. But left them enough room that they could lay down if they wanted to. Now he was doing something with gourds, and mother was copying him. After Chitrah was satisfied that all the gourds were nice and hard and dry. He reached out into the rain and came back with a pot full of rainwater. Andriel almost started laughing, where did he get that? He had to pour off some of the water because it was too full and would boil over putting out the fire, if he hadn't. When the water started to boil, he took it off of the fire, and put it on the dry ground. Andriel took that as her clue, and sprinkled some tea leaves into the pot. Now she knew what the gourds were for. When she thought the tea would be ready, she poured the contents of the pot into the gourds. Now they each had a hot cup of tea. Chitrah started sharing what his life was like growing up on Deysum III. He thought it was important for his son and wife to know about his childhood and his family. When the pot was empty. Chitrah would rinse it out, then put it back out into the rain to fill up again. Andriel shared her childhood, after Chitrah had finished. Krillgan felt really close to his parents, and was glad it was raining. The only bad thing about it, was that they were drinking so much tea. That meant that they had to go out into the rain to pee. Fortunately, because off the fire, and the close bodies, they would dry off quickly and stay warm.

They stayed all day in that shelter, and all night, and the first half of the next day. Before the rain finally stopped. It was nice to get up and stretch. They did some stretching exercises to make sure the blood in their bodies was flowing properly. They ate lunch with the last bit of tea, before Chitrah poured out what remained in the pot, to put the fire out. They left the shelter standing, in case someone else would need it, and because no one would look after it, it would soon fall apart on its own.

That evening, Krillgan did not like the number of predators in the area. There was a large tree with thick branches. Krillgan suggested that they spend the night in the tree, to be safe. The predators knew the family was in the tree, but they also knew one was a force user. So none of them tried climbing the tree to go after them. They would lose their pack advantage. They went off looking for easier prey.

Even though they were able to make themselves comfortable. They were all afraid of going into a deep sleep, and falling out of the tree. They all woke up frequently throughout the night, making sure they were still in the tree. So when morning came they were all quite tired. They were glad they spent the night in the tree, because they found lots of animal tracks under the tree in the rain softened ground, from many different creatures, and they all had claws.

That was the hardest day for them to walk, but they wanted to get well out of that area. After lunch Chitrah suggested they nap while he kept watch. When he had trouble keeping his eyes open. He woke Andriel, so he could have a short nap while she kept watch. There was a nice stream where they napped, so they were able to wash the sleep out of their eyes before they continued. They made much better progress after the nap.

That evening when they stopped for the night. They had trouble finding a dry piece of ground to sleep on. They finally all curled up under an evergreen tree, whose branches rested on the ground. They were dry. They slept well if they did not move. In the morning, they had to spend a lot of time getting the needles from the tree, out of their clothing.

The next few days went well, they were always happy to supplement their regular meals of porridge cakes and cheese with the berries they found. Andriel was concerned that they had not come across the trail since they left it, to get around the large creature. So they started to go further right, of where they were going before.

On the day the cheese ran out they found a nice patch of berries. After finishing of the berries, they reconnected with the trail, which led them to a small stream. It was really a trickle of a water fall, landing in a small pool. Krillgan wanted to drink the water out of the pool, but Chitrah told him not to, because it might have been contaminated by small creatures. There were enough marks for them to know that many animals used this as a watering source. So Chitrah went around the small pool, to catch the trickle of water in his hands. He came to Krillgan, and told him to just take a sip. Then he offered some to his wife, then finished off what was left. That sip was very refreshing after a dry breakfast followed by sticky berries. Chitrah filled up his hands again, and this time let Krillgan drink as much as he wanted. He went back for more and let his son drink again, when he was satisfied. Chitrah used the water still in his hands to wash the berry juice off of Krillgan's face. Chitrah went and refilled his hands and quickly came around to Andriel. She thought that he was going to let her drink out of his hands, like he did for Krillgan. Instead he splashed her in the face with it. Which made her gasp because it was so cold. When she drank the water earlier she thought it was warm. So this was a big shook. The water war was on!

Andriel went around the other side of the pool, and tried to collect some water in her hands, so that she could splash Chitrah. When Chitrah went around to reach above her. She splashed him with what she had. Then she reached up and pulled his hands down to quickly drink the water out of them so he could not splash her with it. They were both laughing, trying to drink and trying to splash at the same time.

Krillgan did not like that he was being left out of the fun. So he jumped into the pool with both feet, to splash them both. That cooled them down. Chitrak quickly picked Krillgan up out of the pool. He did not scold Krillgan, he just told him, that this is one way to ruin a good pair of leather boots. He asked him if he got any water inside of his boots. Krillgan said he did. So Chitrah carried him to a nice sunny spot and told him to take his boots off, and empty the water out of them. Chitrah went back to the trickle of water and filled his wine skin, after that Andriel finished filling hers. They both went and sat beside Krillgan. They had him take his socks off, and wrung the water out of them. Then they made him take his pants off and wrung the water out of the bottom of his trousers. Then they helped him get dressed in his damp clothes. Chitrah did up his boots so that they were just snug, not tight. He told him that because his boots were soaked, they might feel too big for a while, but as they dry they will shrink back down and retake the form of his feet. Krillgan asked him about their boots. Chitrah assured him that they both did get wet, but only on the outside. They did not soak the insides of their boots like he did. He figured that with the day's hot sun, their clothes and boots will be dry in a couple of hours, Krillgan's boots will take longer. In the meantime, their wet clothes will keep them cool. Despite this small setback, Krillgan was having a lot of fun with his parents. He wished their trip would never end.

About a half hours walk further up the trail. Enough time that the wet marks disappeared on their clothes. They saw some women standing on the trail, looking at something. When they came closer and there wasn't as much brush in the way. They saw that the women were looking at a Rancor. This was the first Rancor they had ever seen, but they knew from the Captain's description, that it was probably a midland Rancor. When they were close enough for Krillgan to realise it was in pain. He slipped out of his backpack and hat, and approached the Rancor.

Chitrah picked up Krillgan's backpack and hat, and followed his wife, who was approaching the ladies. The ladies ignored Andriel. They watched Krillgan approach the Rancor, than climbed up on his front. The Rancor opened its mouth, and Krillgan's head and upper body went inside. Andriel asked the women, if they normally let their children play with their Rancor. The one lady without looking at her, told her that they do not let their children play with their Rancor. Then she told Andriel that this was not one of their Rancor. This is a wild Rancor, and it is in considerable pain, but will not let them approach it to find out what is wrong with him.

Andriel asked them, if it will hurt her son? The lady standing next to the first one turned to her, and after a moment of shock, she said, "If he was going to hurt your son, he would have bitten his head off already."

The first lady looked at the second and scolded her, "That is an insensitive thing to say to a mother, when half of the body of her child is in the mouth of a Rancor."

The second lady tried to get the first lady to look at Andriel. Instead she looked back at what was happening with the Rancor. Everyone watched Krillgan. What Andriel did not know, is the reason this lady did not turn to talk with her, was because she was trying to use the force to see what was wrong with the Rancor, and to understand what the child was doing.

After a while Krillgan pulled his head out of the Rancor's mouth, and started looking around on the ground. When he spotted what he thought he needed, he climbed down off of the Rancor, and went and picked up a forked branch. Andriel asked the women, why the Rancor would let her son approach him, when he would not let them approach? The first lady, without turning, told her that the Rancor can smell that they are part of a herd. He is probably afraid that we would think him too badly injured, and kill him to feed the herd. "Your son on the other hand, has no herd smell. The Rancor probably believes he is also too small to hurt him. But what I can't understand, is why the Rancor thinks it can help him?" "My son is an intelligent and capable boy. He takes after his father in that regard. The Rancor probably believes that my son really can help him. I know my son believes that. That is why he approached the Rancor."

The ladies had never heard that expression used on Dathomir before, that a son takes after their father. Usually children are compared to their mother. Krillgan approached the Rancor with his stick, and had the Rancor raise its hand. He then used the Rancor's claw to trim the stick the way he wanted. By the time he finished, it looked like a stick, with a hook on the one end. Krillgan climbed back up on the Rancor, and stuck his upper body back in the Rancor's mouth. He hooked the stick on something, then he could be seen pulling on the stick with all his might. Suddenly Krillgan goes flying backward off of the Rancor. The stick goes flying through the air, and something else came flying out of the Rancor's mouth. Because of his martial arts training. Krillgan does not hurt himself in his tumble. To the ladies amazement, he scrambles back up the front of the Rancor, and shoves his arm in the Rancor's mouth.

The second lady asked, what was he doing? Andriel told them that he is healing the wound in the Rancor's mouth, left behind by whatever he was able to remove from it. The first lady asked how he was able to do that. Andriel replied, "By touch. My son has a healing oil inside of him. He can heal a wound or broken bone simply by touching someone. The closer he touches to the wound, the faster the healing." Krillgan climbed down off of the Rancor. He looked around on the ground for something, then he picked it up. He ran over to the first lady and told her that this was what was hurting the Rancor, and he handed her a large decayed Rancor tooth.

The first lady asked Krillgan if it was true that he can heal a cut just by touching it. He nodded his head, and said yes. She took the Rancor's tooth, and cut her right arm. Then said, "Heal this." Krillgan reached out and put his hand over her wound. When he took his hand away, her arm was healed, and there was no scar.

When the Clan Mother first saw the strange child approach the Rancor, she thought he was covered in berry juice, to make him that purple. She wondered what parents would do that to a child. Then she wondered where they found all the berries to do that? When he came back out of the Rancor's mouth, and was still purple, she knew it was not berry juice that made him that colour. The Rancor would have licked it off, no matter how much pain he was in. When he went back in with the shaped stick in his hand, she was amazed at how clever he was for one so young. She would definitely needed to meet his father. The one he takes after. When she saw him struggling to pull something out of the Rancor's mouth, she gently reached out with the force, so that the others could not detect it, and gave him a boost of strength. When he went flying off of the Rancor, she thought that she may have given him too much. He has excellent reflexes. He landed, rolled, and got to his feet all in one motion. Why is he climbing back up on the Rancor? It was nice of her sister to ask that question out loud. Now she would have to test this young man. Is he the healer her mother told her about in the dream? She has never met a healer like this before. At his young age, he is already more powerful than anyone she has ever know, including the healers in the Misty Falls Clan.

The Clan Mother turned towards his parents, expecting them to be berry purple. It was a good thing her mother taught her from a young age, not to show shock or surprise. In a critical situation, people might think you have lost control. She looked like a town's person, with an extremely bad sunburn, and no hair, he looked like the Creator took a piece of the blue sky, and made his skin out of it. Is this the family her mother warned her about?

When the first lady turned to Andriel. She could tell that she was used to being in control. She also knew from the way she cut herself that she is left handed. That is good, it means she is used to looking at things differently from most everyone else. She studied them for a moment before she spoke. She said that her name is Amblin-Elu Djo. She is the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan, most people just call her Mother. The woman next to her, is her younger sister, Butashe Djo. "She feels that she must protect me from the world, and sometimes I feel the world needs to protect me from her. But I do love her dearly."

When she paused, Andriel took that as her opportunity to introduce her family to the Clan Mother. The Clan Mother said that she was looking forward to talking with them, when they arrive in the main village. Their caravan should be coming through shortly. She had to head back to the main village to organise a meeting of all the clan's Sisters. As an afterthought she mentioned that the Rancor is now willing to come back with them. He feels safe now, because he has a good story to tell the Herd Mother. The Herd Mother loves good stories. She then signalled a couple of Sisters that were sitting on Rancor a short distance away, that they can approach the Rancor. She then sent another Sister on a Rancor to go intercept the caravan, and let them know they will be picking up passengers.

"Let the Sisters know, that are escorting the caravan that they are required to be at the meeting, and head back to the village right away."

The one Sister ran, then jumped on her Rancor, and rode off quickly. Andriel just stood there, this wasn't the way she thought they would be meeting the Clan Mother. Chitrah was helping Krillgan get his backpack back on. They were all alone. Krillgan told his mother that she is a nice lady. He could feel her gently touching the Rancor to help calm it, and to try and find out what was wrong with it. Andriel asked him if that is why she did not turn to talk with her. Krillgan replied that sometimes touching gently, can be harder than just touching. Well now Andriel knew that she wasn't trying to be rude.

They decided to sit and wait by the trail, and let the sun continue to dry their clothes, while they waited for the caravan. It wasn't long before three Sisters on their Rancor went racing past. The one that Mother had sent, waved at them as they rode by. Chitrah said that the caravan should be coming by soon.

A short time later they could see the caravan approaching. When it came closer, they stood up and made sure they were off the trail. When the first Rancor came along side of them, a man jumped out of the cart the Rancor was pulling, and ran in front of the Rancor with both hands raised. Apparently that was the signal to stop.

The man walked up to them and introduced himself. His name is Riktob Drashi, he is in charge of the caravan. What he did not tell them, was that he is the husband of the Clan Mother. They gave him their names. He asked Chitrah, if they could be related, because their last names were so similar? Chitrah asked him if he had ever been to Deysum III. He asked, if that was what they were calling the town nowadays? Chitrah told him never mind, he did not think they were related. Rictob told them that they would have been there earlier, but someone splashed all the water out of the Rancor's drinking pool. So they had to wait for it to fill up before their Rancor could get a drink.

When they did not respond, he asked them if these were all their crates. Chitrah counted them, there was almost one per cart. It was only the one cart that had different supplies. Chitrah said all their crates were there, they did not leave any behind. He asked them what was in the crates. Chitrah told him, that they contained equipment for their trades. He told Riktob that he is a cobbler, his wife is a seamstress and dress designer, his son is a little boy that is growing up too fast. He invited them to climb onto his cart, everyone was anxious to get home as soon as possible.

When they were underway, Krillgan asked him, if anyone in the caravan was a Ranger? He asked Krillgan where he heard about Rangers. Krillgan told him that the Captain told them about Rangers, how they were the best woodsmen, and best archers on Dathomir. The Captain told them the story about the Sister that was going to fight a Nightsister, but before they started, the Sister's Rancor slipped of the edge of the cliff, and the Sister had to rescue it. So a Ranger killed the Nightsister instead.

Riktob said that that is a good story. Then he told Krillgan that he used to be a Ranger, but not anymore. Krillgan asked him why? He told him that he got married, than his wife gave birth to a baby girl, so he did not have the time to commit to being a Ranger anymore. Krillgan asked him how old his daughter is. Riktob looked at Krillgan, than told him that his daughter was just a little younger than he is. He asked Riktob if he thought his daughter would want to play with him. Riktob asked him if he bites. Krillgan said that he can bite really hard if he has to, and showed him his teeth. Riktob asked him if he bites little girls. Krillgan looked at him.

"Why would I want to do that?"

Andriel smiled at his comment. Riktob also smiled, and said that he believed his daughter would want to play with him. Krillgan asked, if there were other children who would want to play with him? Riktob was sure that other children would want to play with him too. Krillgan could hardly wait to get to the village to meet all the children.

That evening when they stopped for the night. The others in the caravan shared their dinner with them. Riktob opened a container with tea leaves. He said that they just got in a supply at the trading post, and made tea for everyone. He told the family that he did not have any cups for them, so they would have to wait for someone to finish their tea before they could have a cup. Krillgan went to the cart, and retrieved the three gourds out of his backpack. He showed Riktob, that they have their own cups.

Everyone slept on the open ground right next to the carts. Some slept near the fire. No one was worried about predators, because of all the Rancor, that were in the caravan.

In the meeting, Amblin-Elu asked all the Sisters that had shared their visions and dreams with her, about a healer being sent to their clan. To share them with all the Sisters. She decided that she would only share her dreams with the elders. The Sisters might feel that she was trying to pressure them too much. After they had shared, and everyone had a chance to question them about their dreams and visions, the Clan Mother shared her encounter with a healer that day. Only he was a purple little boy. She then had every Sister that was there. Share what they saw. After they all shared, the Clan Mother told them they have a decision to make. There is no doubt that this little boy is a healer. Clan law says, that if a boy, that is a force user, shows that he has the empathy of a healer, than the Sisters of the clan can take him in and train him, just as they would train any female force user. One of the Sisters asked, how do they know he is a force user? The Clan Mother held up the Rancor's tooth. "He approached a hurting Rancor, and pulled this tooth out of his mouth. Can any of you imagine a non-force using child doing that?"

Butashe Djo also confirmed that her sister did cut herself deep enough with the Rancor's tooth to draw blood, and the boy healed her, and there is no scar. She let the Sisters talk about that amongst themselves for a few minutes. After she thought they had enough time. She asked them if they were willing to accept this boy into their Sisterhood. One of the Sisters asked if that means that he would be taking part in the Bonding Ceremony? The Clan Mother confirmed that he would be like any other Sister, so he must take part in the Bonding Ceremony, so that he could bond with them, and they could bond with him. One of the Sisters commented that it might be okay for now, but he is going to grow up into a man, and he will see them all naked. "How do you think he will feel about all these old naked ladies, looking at his young naked body?" No one commented, but some of the older women laughed. When no one had anything more to say or ask, the Clan Mother asked by a show of hands, if they were willing to accept this boy as a Sister. The majority of the Sisters raised their hands, especially everyone who had a dream or vision. She was not happy that it was not unanimous. She asked if anyone was opposed to them accepting the boy as a Sister, if so they need to raise their hand. No one opposed it. So she declared that because no one opposed this boy becoming a Sister, they will accept him, and start training him. The Clan Mother had made a mental note of everyone one who had not raised their hand. She noticed that most of them were from the Raek family. She wondered how this was going to affect the bonding of the Sisters over the next couple of years, since they do not bring children they are training to the bonding ceremonies, until they reach puberty.

Andriel, Chitrah, and Krillgan, enjoyed the caravan ride. Riktob had told them that they would be spending one more night with the caravan, before they reach the main village. "When you start seeing the herds of Brackaset, you know we do not have that much farther to go." They started doing what everyone else did. They would hop out of the cart, and run along beside it, then jump back in when they started feeling tired. It was the first time they jumped out of the cart that was the most difficult. But the Rancor walked at a steady pace, so after a couple of tries, it was like they had done it all their life. It also made the trip seem to go faster. Krillgan liked, that whenever he saw a creature he did not know the name of. He could ask Riktob, and he would tell him its name, and a little about it, including whether its meat had a nice taste or not. They saw a small pack of the two legged Baz Nitch with their two long horns, and four short ones. Riktob said they were easy to approach, but would attack you if they felt threatened. It was best to hunt them with bow and arrow. Because you would be too far away, for them to attack you. So they would just run away, leaving you with your kill. They also saw a herd of the reptilian Bolma grazing in an open space. Riktob told him that they are a difficult creature to kill because of their thick skin, so you have to be an experienced hunter to bring one down. He wasn't that fond of their meat, but the Rancor's seem to like it. So it is one of the creatures they hunt regularly, but they do not take more than one creature from a herd, at a time. They also use the hide to make a strong durable leather. Something that a good cobbler should know about.

This herd was being stalked by a couple of Kamurith. They are a four legged reptilian carnivore. They are brown skinned, with white bellies, and an impressive long orange sail along the spine of their back. They are not large enough to take down an adult Bolma, they wanted to get one of their young. The strategy they use, is to try to get all the bulls to chase one of them, while the other runs into the herd to kill a young one. Once they kill one, the herd will move off and leave them alone with their kill. Krillgan watched as only one or two of the bull Bolma would chase a Kamurith, apparently they knew the strategy as well. Riktob told Krillgan that the Kamurith really prefer hunting Brackaset, but they keep their herds well-guarded, so they are forced to hunt other prey, here. You will find a lot of them in the Rolling Red Hills, where there are still a lot of wild herds of Brackaset. They saw a small herd of Malkloc. A large reptilian herbivore, whose only predator is the Rancor. Riktob told him that you will only find females and young Makloc in a herd. When the males reach a certain size than the females will drive him away, because they are too clumsy, and it can accidentally kill the young. They hate all two legged creatures. That is why you will never find Baz Nitch grazing amongst them. Chitrah said that this was the type of creature that was on the trail that forced them to leave the trail, and just head off on their own. Following the directions that the Captain gave them. Riktob mentioned that they did find a very large bull Makloc grazing on the trail, not that far out of town. It moved out of their way when they approached, because there are so many Rancor in their caravan. He asked them, how they knew to avoid it? Chitrah told him that Krillgan warned them, he can sense creatures that are nearby. He can also seem to be able to tell whether they are safe to be near, or whether they are aggressive. Riktob made a mental note to tell his wife this, along with all the other mental notes he had made about this family. They saw some Verne grazing near the Makloc. Riktob told them that this is often the case. Most predators avoid the Makloc, so the Verne like to graze near them. Riktob likes their meat, and their hide makes a good leather. Another one that the cobbler should know about.

After the meeting with the Sisters, Amblin-Elu went home to make sure that her daughter was tucked into her bed, before she went to meet with the elders. Her daughter was waiting up for her. So she gave her a kiss good night, and told her that in a few days, daddy would be back home.

When she met with the elders. She first shared all the visions and dreams that the Sisters shared at the meeting. Then she shared her dreams, she told them that she did not share them at the meeting, because the Sisters might feel like she was trying to force them to accept the boy into the Sisterhood. The elders told her that she was right to do so. It is important for the Sisters to accept him on their own.

The elder called Hm-Shassa shared the vision she had of her mother. At first she thought it was her, because they look so much alike, and she was able to talk with her, but then she realised that the information she was given, could only come from the Clan Mothers that had gone on before them. She shared the warning, about the Nightsisters wanting to get their hands on him, once they find out that he can heal just by touching. They could kill his brain, and he would still heal them. Just what they need to try and take over all the clans. They would kidnap his parents to force him to come to them. If they have any more children, they will kidnap them, if they can't kidnap the parents. They talked about what they should do to try and prevent this. They talked until the wee hours of the morning. The Clan Mother did not like that they would have to deceive the Clan Mothers of the other clans. The elders pointed out, that the Clan Mothers that know the prophecies, would see the deception for what it is, and know who has come to visit them. They will not give them away. The Clan Mother agreed, and went home to her daughter. When her daughter awoke in the morning. She found her mother asleep on the top of her covers, right next to her. She still had on the clothes that she wore last night. She knew that her mother preferred coming to her bed, rather than sleeping on her own, when father wasn't home. She did not mind, she liked seeing her mother's face when she first woke up. She dressed herself to go for breakfast. Made sure she covered her mother with a blanket, then kissed her goodbye on her cheek. She always smiled when she did that. Her daughter hoped it meant that she was having good dreams.

Andriel was the first one to spot the Brackaset herds. She noticed that everyone on the caravan had stopped running, and were in their carts. The Rancor had increased their pace, they were no longer walking. They knew they were close to home. Still, it was well after dinner, when they first saw the main village. It was dark before they reached the main gates. So they could not tell what the village looked like. There was an open area, a short distance beyond the main gates. All the carts were left their just as they were, and the Rancor unhooked from their harnesses. The Rancor went left, and the people went right. Except for Riktob, who said he was taking the tea to the kitchen, so that everyone can have tea with their breakfast.

A young lady, who had greeted her father with a hug, approached the family. She told them that she would show them where they could spend the night. They walked over a foot bridge, and could make out some buildings. None of the moons had risen yet, so it was hard to see. The young lady knew where she was going. Andriel suspected that if she had blindfolded her, she could still walk around the village without stumbling, knowing exactly where she was. She led them to what could only be considered a hut. It was dry, it was clean, and it was small. There was no covering over the door, so anyone walking by could look in, provided they knew where the doorway was. After the young lady left. Chitrah took his computer out of his backpack, and turned it on, so that they could see what it looked like, on the inside, from the light of the computer. In one corner, there was a pile of straw, on the other side of the hut was a nook area. There was one window near the door on the nook side. There was one table but no chairs. They placed all their backpacks on the ground, against the wall, between the table and the pile of straw. Andriel laid on the straw, and said it was more comfortable than sleeping on the ground. Krillgan laid down beside her. Chitrah placed his computer on the table and shut it off. He did not need the light to find his sleeping place beside Krillgan.

After his parents had fallen asleep, the Clan Mother showed up with some bedding from her own home. Two of the moons had risen, so there was enough light to see in the hut. Krillgan got up when she entered. When she saw his parents asleep on the straw, she went, "Oh Dear." She told Krillgan that she guessed his parents did not know how to make a straw mattress. Krillgan shook his head no. But he did say that his parents knew how to live without droids. The Clan Mother did not know what droids are. She apologised that their hospitality was lacking. She will make sure that someone will come by tomorrow to show them how to make a straw mattress, then they can use the covering she brought them to cover it. She also brought them some pillows and a comforter. She will make sure that they have an oil lamp for the table, and coverings for the doorway and window.

Then she asked Krillgan to make sure to tell his parents that this is only temporary. Once they know what their needs are, they will custom build a home for them. Krillgan took everything she brought for them, and placed it on top of their backpacks, except the comforter. She wished him pleasant dreams, and told him that they would talk tomorrow. Krillgan took the comforter, and spread it so that it covered both his parents' feet. Then he walked backwards between them on the pile of straw, to spread the comforter over them. Then he crawled back down to his position between them, and fell asleep.

The next morning another young lady showed up at the door with a wash basin, and a pitcher of fresh water in it. She had three towels draped over one arm. She found the blue man sitting on the floor with two boards before him. Light was coming from the one board. She wondered if this was clan Sister magic.

Because she darkened the doorway. Chitrah shut off his computer and placed it on the table. He took the basin and pitcher of water, and placed them on the table. Now he knew what the table was for. He took the towels and thanked the girl. She was surprised that the blue man could speak their language. She gave him a quick curtsy and left.

After she left, Chitrah stripped down to his waist, and gave himself a good morning wash. After drying himself he took some clean clothes from his pack and changed in the nook area. He decided to put on his military gray outfit, because he did not look so blue in it, and this will be the first time most people will see him. After he was dressed, he woke Krillgan. He helped him to wash up, while Krillgan tried telling him about the Clan Mother's visit last night. It was hard to talk while his father was rubbing a handful of cold water in his face. After his father was satisfied that he was clean and dry. His father helped him change in the nook. His father had suggested he wear his light kaki brown outfit, so people will not suspect that they are part of an elite military outfit.

After Krillgan was dressed, he helped his father move the table and washstand into the nook. Then they woke mother. At first she grabbed the comforter and rolled over. Then she sat straight up, they never had a comforter when she went to sleep last night. Chitrah gently took the comforter from her and offered his hand, to help her get up. When she was on her feet, Chitrah told her they had a visitor last night. Then asked Krillgan to tell his mother about last night's visit. While he did that Chitrah took his wife's backpack to the nook, then led her there by the hand, gave her a kiss on her cheek, and told her it was time to wash up and change. He held one end of the comforter up, and had Krillgan hold up the other end. Andriel was awake enough now, to do what her husband asked. While she processed in her mind what her son told her. They want to build her a home.

"Now see that Ludia. There are two proper gentlemen. Making sure the woman of the house is properly looked after, and has her privacy while she dresses. I believe the older one is taken, but the young one is quite handsome, and available."

"Mother, I'm only a little girl, I'm not old enough to get married."

"I'm only looking out for your future."

"I know. He does look nice for a little boy, even though he is quite purple."

"Well you probably look quite pink to him."

Chitrah and Krillgan had turned to see who was talking. It was the Clan Mother and a little girl, they both suspected is her daughter. The Clan Mother introduced her daughter to them. She said, her husband mentioned that Krillgan wanted to play with their daughter. When they looked at her with puzzled expressions, she told them that Riktob Drasi, the man in charge of the caravan is her husband. Now they knew who she was talking about.

Andriel had finished dressing. She had chosen to wear her dark kaki brown outfit. She told the guys that they can put the comforter down now. So the Clan Mother introduced her daughter to her, then she asked her daughter to take Krillgan for breakfast. She needed to stay and talk with the adults. Both Andriel and Chitrah noticed that she did not say parents.

After Ludia and Krillgan left, an elderly lady entered the hut. She told them that they have a very nice looking boy. Amblin-Elu introduced the lady as a clan elder, her name is Hm-Shassa, "She has something to share with you."

Hm-Shassa told them that an old Clan Mother appeared to her in a vision, to warn them about the attempts the Nightsisters would make to try and get their son under their control. Once they find out about his ability to heal with just a touch. She explained the different ways the Nightsisters would try to take control of him. None of which were nice for them or any future children.

Their solution, is to introduce them to the whole clan, as Mother Andriel, and Father Chitrah. That way the whole clan will be calling them mother and father, and not just their son. Which is easier than telling Krillgan that he cannot call them mother and father anymore, because he always will. They will also tell the other clans that they were servants to the child's parents.

"When the parents died in some great tragedy, they made you promise to bring up their child for them. Because you were together all the time, to look after the child, you fell in love and were married."

"Won't the other clans get upset with you, when they find out the truth?"

"No. Because they will know that the deception was not for them, but for the Nightsisters."

Andriel and Chitrah looked at each other. It would not be bad to be called Mother Andriel, and Father Chitrah, by the whole clan. Especially if it will help protect their son, and future children. They agreed to do it. Then the Clan Mother asked them to tell her about the Captain who brought them here, and knew about Rangers, when no one outside the clan is supposed to know about Rangers.

So they told her about Captain Richard, and about his many acquaintances who were Sisters from all the clans. How he fell in love with one. Kindell from the Singing Mountain Clan. He had gone so far as to ask her to marry him. He was ready to abandon his ship and live with her here. But she turned him down, she said that she can only be with him for a short time, and he has something important to do for Dathomir. She was killed by a Nightsister ambush, when she was on her way to town to be with him, the next time he came to the planet. He was so devastated, that he hasn't returned to Dathomir since then, until now. He said he was fulfilling Kindell's prophecy.

The Clan Mother took Hm-Shassa aside, and asked her about this Sister called Kindell. Hm-Shassa thought for a while. To the Clan Mother it was like she was dusting off some memories she had not looked at for a while. She told the Clan Mother that the reason she does not know about her, is because Kindell was killed before she was born. "She was a very good friend of your mother. You know her mother, Grasma Raek, and her cousin, Allya Raek. You should talk with her mother Grasma, ask her if you can see a complete copy of Kindell's prophecy. If it has been fulfilled completely, than it should be written into our book of Knowledge and Wisdom. The Clan Mother agreed.

Ludia was proud to introduce Krillgan to all the children. He asked them if they could all play together after breakfast. They told him that their parents said that they are not allowed to play with Ludia anymore. He asked them why? They said that their parents are afraid that she might accidentally hurt them. But they really like her, and hope that they can still be friends.

Krillgan looked at Ludia, to see if she can help him understand. She told him that the parents must have been told that she will be starting her training today to be a Sister. They told Krillgan that he could play with them. He told them that he did not think their parents would let them play with him either. All the children's eyes got really big, are you going to be a Sister as well? Krillgan said he thought so. Than he asked them if they could still be friends? They all said sure, so he stuck out his hand to shake on it. Ludia asked him what he was doing. Krillgan said that where he came from people shake hands when they agree on something. So a girl reached over to shake his hand, and started giggling. He asked her why she was doing that.

"Because you are tickling me where I was cut, when I squeezed through the bushes."

Krillgan asked to see it. She pointed to her arm, but it was gone. A boy who had a scraped elbow, asked if he could shake his hand. When he took Krillgan's hand, all the children watched the scab fall off of his elbow. Now just about every child has a scratch, or a scrape, or a cut somewhere on their body. So they all wanted to shake Krillgan's hand. Some felt a tingling, or a tickling, others felt nothing. But when they checked, they were all healed.

Of course all the children ran to tell their parents that the new purple boy healed them, because he's their friend. Ludia was just as excited as the other children that Krillgan could heal. She knew that boys who were healers were allowed to be Sisters. This meant that she could still play with him.

When her best friend, who is also her cousin, came in for breakfast, Ludia ran over and pulled her over to where they were sitting, to meet Krillgan, the healer. She told Krillgan that this is her cousin, and best friend, Diennu. Krillgan stuck out his hand to her, and told her that he was pleased to meet her. She took it because her cousin told her to. She asked what was happening to her. Ludia asked her why? She said she hurt her ankle the other day, but did not tell anyone, but now it was feeling tingly. Ludia told her that Krillgan is healing her. She thought that he would have to put on a poultice, or some bandages to do that. Ludia told her that he doesn't have to do those things, all he has to do was touch her.

When the tingling stopped she looked at both her ankles. The one she hurt, was not swollen any more. The three of them went up together to get their breakfast. By now, word was spreading that the new purple boy is a healer.

When their Clan Mother walked into the dining hall, followed by the red female, the blue male, and a clan elder. Everyone became quiet. Their Clan Mother introduced the red lady as Mother Andriel Miranna, everyone can call her Mother Andriel. Everyone started asking the person sitting next to them, if that meant she was a Clan Mother as well? Their Clan Mother held up her hand for silence. Then introduced the blue man as Father Chitrah Drashing, and everyone could call him Father Chitrah. Then she asked Krillgan to stand up. When he did, she told the clan that he was going to be trained as a Sister. Now this really got everyone talking. They knew that there had been a few male Sisters in the past, but they were all from different clans. He would be the first male Sister in the history of the Singing Mountain Clan.

While they were talking, a young lady walks up to the three children, and said, "Guess who gets to be your instructor." Ludia, and Diennu, yelled her name, "Kreen", then got up and hugged her. They then introduced Kreen Raek, to their new best friend, Krillgan. Krillgan got up and extended his hand saying that he was pleased to meet her. Ludia whispered that she was supposed to shake his hand. So she did.

Kreen told them that she would like to talk with them after breakfast, then she will leave them alone for the day, because she needs to go talk with her own instructor. After breakfast she asked them if they had used the force yet in their life. She started with Krillgan, since he was the oldest. Krillgan told her about being able to sense where the animals were, when they were walking here, so that they could avoid the bad ones, he did not tell her about warning the predators away. That would be too much like bragging. He also mentioned that he used the force to help him run as fast as the adults, when they were riding with the caravan. The girls were amazed that he could do all that without instruction. Kreen asked about when he was helping the Rancor. Did he use the force than? Krillgan said, he must have, without thinking he was, because he was able to make the Rancor calm down, than open its mouth. He was able to get it to raise its right hand, so he could trim the stick he had found. He just felt like he was talking to it. Then he used the force to help pull the bad tooth out.

Now this was all news to the two girls. But they waited until Kreen left, to ask him about it. When she asked Ludia, and Diennu, they both said that they did not think they had used it yet. Kreen told them that they must have been observed using the force at some time, or they would not be here for training. Like Krillgan when he helped the Rancor, he did not realise he was using the force, but the other people there did. So they have probably been using the force, and did not know they were doing it, because it felt natural to do so. So for the next couple of days, whenever they do something, they have to ask themselves whether they were using the force or not. The initial part of the Sisters training, is to become conscience of where in their lives they were using the force. Than start applying it to every part of their life. Basically learning to magnify all of their physical abilities. That is why the other children were not allowed to play with them, because they need to be able to use the abilities before they can take fine control over them, so that they don't accidentally hurt someone.

Now Krillgan had to go with the Clan Mother and his parents and the elder. To go to each of the Singing Mountain Clan's villages, to be introduced to the people. Ludia and Diennu asked to come along, so Diennu's mother, the Clan Mother's sister, Butashe, also came along. They enjoyed meeting the children in each village, and seeing their reaction when their cuts, scrapes, scratches, and bruises were all healed. They had fun playing in the fields around the villages, and started running like Krillgan did. They thought it funny, that they could walk right up to a Brackaset, and it would ignore them. Even when they started jumping over them.

When they returned to the main village, everyone wanted to know when they were going to open the crates, so they could see what was in them. Andriel and Chitrah had them put aside the crates that held their personal items. The first crate they opened up was Andriel's sewing machine. The dressmakers in the village were careful in touching it, like it was a holy relic. They asked Mother Andriel if they would be able to use it. Andriel assured them that they could all use it, once she was satisfied that they were properly trained. The next crate that was opened, contained Andriel's loom. The weavers felt the same way about this loom as the dressmakers did about the sewing machine. They also had Mother Andriel's assurance that they could use it once properly trained. They opened the last large crate, and found Chitrah's sewing machine. At first the villagers thought it was another sewing machine for Mother Andriel, but the cobblers assured them that this machine was for sewing leather. When they opened Chitrah's case of tools for working with leather. They thought heaven had come to Dathomir. With all the jigs, knives, and hammers, they felt that they could now make any type of footwear they could imagine.

That's when people started asking them about the clothes they were wearing. They were impressed that Mother Andriel had sewn all of their outfits on this sewing machine, and that Father Chitrah had made all their boots with the equipment that he brought. The cobblers had them take off their boots so that they could examine them. The Clan Mother was curious, and called over the heads of the different crafts, and asked them what the fuss was about. The crafts' people told their Mother that these two individuals were great Masters of their crafts. No one in all the clans can match the work that they are capable of doing. They do deserve the titles of Mother Andriel, and Father Chitrah. Not only that. They are able to train them all up to their level. All Mother could think about were the prophecies.

That afternoon, Andriel and Chitrah talked about having a workout, they had not done it for a long while. If they are not careful, their abilities will deteriorate. They found Krillgan and asked him, if he wanted to do martial arts training? Did he ever!

He told Ludia, and Diennu, that he was going to train this afternoon with his parents, but first they need to all change. The said that they wanted to watch, because they had no idea what they were going to do. When Mother Andriel and Father Chitrah came out of their hut with the suits on that made them look fat, both girls wanted to laugh, but felt that they shouldn't. Krillgan looked real nice in his white outfit. They wondered why he carried that board and the two clan fighting sticks. But they followed along behind. One of the Sisters noticed this strange procession, and followed along behind them. They found a nice clearing in some woods. Than Mother Andriel, and Father Chitrah started fighting.

The Sister ran as fast as she could, and found the Clan Mother. She told the Clan Mother that she has to come as quick as possible, Mother Andriel, and Father Chitrah are fighting. All the Sisters that were with the Clan Mother started following the Sister. The Clan Mother asked her how bad was it. The Sister replied that they were not bad at all, they were actually quite good. The Clan Mother thought that was an unusual reply.

When they entered the clearing, she saw her daughter and niece kneeling on the ground, near Krillgan, watching what was going on. Andriel let out a yell, and Chitrah went flying. The Sisters were stunned by what they saw these two adults doing to each other. When Andriel and Chitrah realised that it was not just the girls watching, they both stopped, and walked over to the Clan Mother. She asked what they were doing. They told her that they were practising self-defence. She asked about the suits. They told her that the suits were to protect them so that they would not be hurt. She asked if everyone who practised this, had to wear these suits. Chitrah smiled and said, "Only if they practise with Andriel." Then she asked about the outfit Krillgan was wearing, was he also going to do self-defence? Chitrah told her that he was going to do martial arts, it is similar but different. He asked Krillgan, if he was ready to give a small demonstration? Krillgan smiled and said he was ready.

Chitrah signalled Krillgan to rise. He rose up and bowed to his father. His father bowed back. Then Chitrah issued commands that sounded to the Clan Mother like barking. But with every command he did something new, whether it was a punch, kick, or block. The Clan Mother asked Chitrah what good any of this is. Chitrah suggested that she ask one of her Sisters to attack Krillgan, but without using the force. He told them not to worry Krillgan would not be hurt. The Clan Mother looked at all the Sisters that were there, and picked the smallest to attack Krillgan. The Sister yelled and ran at Krillgan, and threw a punch when she was within range. The next thing she knew she was flying through the air. She had to use the force, to land without hurting herself. She came back and apologised to Mother because she had to use the force to land. Mother said it was all right, she was sure Father Chitrah did not want her to hurt herself. Chitrah agreed with Mother. She then asked why they had clan fighting sticks. Chitrah told her that they wanted to practise fighting techniques. He opened his computer and displayed a 3D image of two men fighting with sticks in slow motion, with a narrative describing what each man was doing. Then he played it back in real time. The Sisters were all impressed. The Clan Mother asked him, if he had a way to recharge the power supply for his machine? The Sisters were equally impressed that Mother sounded like she knew what she was talking about. Chitrah told her that his machine was capable of recharging off of sunlight. She asked him, if it would be damaged if left out in the rain? Chitrah said his machine is protected from the rain.

The Clan Mother asked Andriel if she was capable of teaching others what she just saw. She said she was not, only Chitrah was. She lacks the self-control needed to instruct without hurting. The Clan Mother smiled, she is like a child still learning to use the force. The Clan Mother asked Chitrah about training her Sisters and possibly the militia, in what was demonstrated. Chitrah said that he would train them only in the technique, he has taught his son. What he was doing with his wife, he would only teach to non-force using women, who promise to share it, only with other non-force user women. Not with anyone else.

The Clan Mother told Chitrah that they would talk about setting up a schedule, after breakfast tomorrow morning. Word spread like a wildfire through the clan Sisters that their Clan Mother was arranging for them to receive training from a non-force using male. The ones that were there, that saw the demonstration, tried being the buffer between the other Sisters and their Mother. They told them to trust their Mother. Once they start their training, they will understand its benefits.

After dinner the Clan Mother asked Grasma Raek if she could have a private word with her. Grasma arranged for some tea to be brought to her home from the kitchen, so that she could host her Mother. She was surprised to hear that Mother wanted to hear about her daughter, and her prophecy. She did confirm that her daughter was very close to Amblin-Elu's mother. As were all the Sisters. She handed her a copy of the prophecy, and asked Mother why this interest in her daughter. Amblin-Elu glanced quickly at the prophecy, and knew she would need to study it closely. She asked Grasma if she could keep this copy, if not, could she make her a copy so that she could study it with the elders. When Mother mentioned the elders, she knew this was serious, and knew that Mother would take great care of this copy. So she asked that this copy be returned when they have finished studying it.

Mother told her of her interest, because of the story the new couple shared with her, about the person who brought them to Dathomir. Mother shared with Grasma the story that Andriel and Chitrah shared with her. By the time she was done. Grasma had tears in her eyes. Mother asked her why the tears? Grasma told her that she can hear her daughter rebuking her for believing a twisted version of the prophecy. Mother asked, "What twisted version?" Grasma told her that she needs to understand, that everyone in her family wanted Kindell's prophecy to be true. Kindell had an agreement with her cousin Allya, that they would share their lover, since neither one had declared themselves celibate until they marry. When Captain Richard came into her life, Kindell transformed into a better person. When she sensed the Captain was coming, she always sent someone to find Allya, as was their agreement. But usually by the time Allya was found, the Captain had already departed the planet, which frustrated Allya. "I remember talking to Kindell about that. She said that Captain Richard knew about our customs. He had a good heart, and would perform his duty towards Allya. Even if he had married her." The only time Allya was found nearby, was when Kindell was killed, and she was close enough to go bring him to the funeral. She took her time taking him back to town. Captain Richard may have felt that Allya asked to have sex with him, to comfort him. But to Allya, it was more. She was getting what he owed her.

Kiranna was conceived during that trip back to town. Every few months during her pregnancy Allya would travel to town, to see if Captain Richard had returned to Dathomir. After Kiranna was born, she was upset that the Captain had not come back to her. "I think that she expected that Captain Richard would propose to her, as he did to Kindell. Now that she had his child. But he never came back.

Allya went on to convince the family, that the important thing that the Captain had done for Dathomir, was father her child.

Because we wanted to believe the prophecy, and because it looked like the Captain would never return, we started believing her interpretation of it."

Mother asked her, what does she now believe?

Grasma said that now she believes that Kindell's prophecy does not require any special interpretation, the facts will reveal whether it is true or not. Right now the facts indicate that three people that the Captain just brought here, are the ones mentioned in the prophecy.

Mother asked her, how she thinks the rest of the family will react to the news that Captain Richard did return and brought some people to Dathomir? Grasma felt that most of the family will be happy to see that the prophecy is beginning to unfold the way it is written. The ones that will resist it, and resist accepting Krillgan, will be Allya, her daughter Kiranna, and her daughter Kreen. When it became evident that Kiranna, could not fulfill the prophecy. All expectations shifted to her daughter Kreen. It will be hard for Kreen to accept that she is not the important one, when she has been told all her life that she is.

"To make things harder for her. You have appointed her as instructor, for the one who looks like they will be fulfilling the prophecy."

Mother thanked Grasma for sharing what she did. It will certainly make the studying of the prophecy, that much more interesting for the elders. As far as Kreen Raek is concerned. It might be harder for her to instruct Krillgan. But once she sees him for who he is. It might be easier for her to surrender to the truth. Grasma hoped that Mother was right. For now, she has family to talk to.

Andriel started craving new ale. She talked to the lady in charge of the kitchen, and she connected her with the ones who brew the ale. When Andriel explained to them how to make new ale, and that it was safe for children to drink, they were all for trying to make it. With the cooperation of the kitchen, they had the first batch ready for sampling in four days. First they let Mother Andriel, and Father Chitrah taste it. To see if that was the taste they were looking for. When they both approved. They took a cold glass to Mother, to see if she would approve the regular production, of this beverage, to be consumed with dinner, and acceptable for children.

When Mother tried it, she asked who came up with the recipe. They told her that Mother Andriel said that this is a common drink, on all the worlds that grow their own grain. Mother gave her approval, and asked that they thank Mother Andriel for her, for sharing the recipe.

Krillgan noticed, that Ludia, and Diennu, like putting flowers in their hair. So when he found a whole field of wild flowers, he went and got them. He also helped them pick them, and he patiently held them while they put them in each other's hair. He was even more patient, when they placed them in his own hair.

On their way back to the village, Diennu's mother, Butashe, was the first one to see them, and made them follow her a ways into the woods, before anyone else saw them. She asked them where they found all the flowers. They told her that Krillgan found a whole field of them, and was willing to share the flowers with them. Butashe told them that boys don't have flowers in their hair, except when they are ready to get married. So she asked Krillgan, which of the two beautiful girls he was going to marry. The girls blushed, and Krillgan said both of them. Butashe told him that he cannot marry both of them, he was only allowed to marry one of them. Krillgan looked sad, he said that he likes both of them, and does not want to choose just one, because the other will be hurt. So maybe he should not marry either one. Butashe said that if he was not going to marry either one, than she needs to remove the flowers from his hair. So he let her. While she was doing that, she asked the children if they knew that plants produce flowers, so that they can make seeds for new plants that make flowers to grow. So it is not a good thing to pick all the flowers from all the plants, or more new plants will not grow. Without new plants, the old plants could die, and then there will be no flowers. The world would not be the same without flowers. So next time, they should only pick a few.

She told them not to worry this time, because it will rain tonight, and that will give the plants strength to grow new flowers. After she removed all the flowers from Krillgan's hair, she started removing some of the flowers from the girls' hair, and rearranged them so that they both had a pretty bow of flowers, over the top of their heads, going from ear to ear. She told them that she did not want the village to think they were bad girls, because they are not. They just did not know. Then she asked the girls if that was true. Both girls and Krillgan nodded their heads. They did not want to do anything bad, and they did not mean to hurt the plants. Butashe told them that it was still okay to pick flowers, just not so many. All the children gave her a hug and thanked her for teaching them something new.

They were happy that it did rain that night. The next day when they went to check on the field, they found that there were new flowers, just like Diennu's mother said. Only there was not as many as before they picked the flowers. It would be a couple of years before they were comfortable picking flowers from that field again.

Amblin-Elu loved reading through the book of Knowledge and Wisdom. She was very proficient at reading the old Kwa symbols. She thought that she had come across a recipe for a potion to help aliens, appear more human. She told the elders that she would try it on Andriel and Chitrah, it might help them to fit in better into the community. The elders warned her not to try it, the ingredients were quite strong, and it wasn't clear just how it would change them. They did not want her to diminish who they are. She thought it would be safe to try it on Andriel and Chitrah. But she would not try it on Krillgan, because it might hurt the creatures that give him his healing ability. They elders told her that she was the Clan Mother, so she was responsible to the clan for whatever decision she made. So she mixed the potions, and found the family out for a walk together, as it was family day.

All the clans take one day in each cycle not to work, but to spend that day with their family, to help keep the family bonds strong.

Amblin-Elu asked them to drink the potion. She told them that her book said that it would help them appear more human. Andriel and Chitrah, did not want to drink the potion. They were happy being just who they were, and thought they looked human enough. But because the Clan Mother asked them, they knew they could not say no to her. They both drank it and they both felt pain because of it. Chitrah felt that the sack under his horn of manhood, was on fire, he had to squat hoping that more air would get down there, and help cool it off. If there had been a puddle of water nearby, he would have sat in it. He would not have cared who was around him, it hurt so much. It also hurt him to see his wife in so much pain. It was obvious to him that she was hurting a lot more than he was.

Andriel was also squatting because of the pain. There was a fire in her lower abdomen. Krillgan wanted to reach out and touch both his parents, so that they would stop suffering. But the Clan Mother held him back, and told him that he was not allowed to interfere with what was happening to his parents. Krillgan did not like what she was doing to his parents. She was not a bad person, so why was she hurting them? He believed that what she was doing was wrong, and turned away so he would not have to watch. The Clan Mother did not like that she was hurting Krillgan by doing this. Maybe the elders were right, she did not know enough about the potion.

Then the Clan Mother noticed that Andriel was bleeding. She took off her cloak to shield Andriel's body from view, and had one of her Sisters to do the same. She told the Sister that Andriel was going into her moon cycle and needs some absorbent padding. Sending the Sister away. The Clan Mother asked Andriel, if this was the normal time for her to go into her moon cycle? Andriel told her, that she was a little bit late for her normal time, but thought it was because her body was adjusting to the influence of the four moons. She has never been on a planet with so many moons before. The Clan Mother thought that the amount of blood she saw was excessive for a normal moon cycle. Then it struck her what she had actually done to Andriel, and she turned white.

When the Sister returned, she asked her Mother, if she was okay? She said she wasn't, but told her to instruct Mother Andriel in how to use the padding. They both held their cloaks high enough so that Andriel was completely hidden from view. By now the pain was starting to subside for Chitrah, so he decided to stand up and walk a little to see if it helped. It didn't, so he squatted back down. After Andriel did what she could to keep the blood from dripping to the ground. She asked if they could lower their cloaks, so that it would be easier for her to breathe. They did as she asked, and stood there for an embarrassing long time. It suddenly occurred to the Clan Mother that they may both need to drink water right now. So she sent the Sister to go get them some water. They were both quite thirsty. They both consumed two, large, cold, cups of water. It did help them both to start feeling much better. It wasn't long after that, that Chitrah was up on his feet, and did not feel like he had to squat anymore. It was a few more minutes, before Andriel finally stood up. She kept the Clan Mother's cloak around her to hide the blood stains on her outfit.

Even though it was not yet dinner time, both Andriel and Chitrah felt that they needed to return to their hut to sleep. The Clan Mother asked them how she could help them, but they ignored her and both leaned on Krillgan for strength. The Clan Mother told the Sister to get to their hut before they did. Make sure that they have lots of cold water on hand to drink, and a good supply of padding for Mother Andriel. She also asked her to have a tray of food and new ale sent to their hut. They might not eat, but she doubted Krillgan will leave them.

After that, the Clan Mother went and spoke with the elders. She told them that she believes Andriel was pregnant, and that she just caused her to miscarry the baby. A couple of the elders cried. All of them were upset, because they knew what this meant.

One of the elders chastised Amblin-Elu, "Your mother warned you, you knew what would happen if you hurt one of them."

Amblin-Elu hung her head in shame. Another elder came to her defence, in that she did not mean the woman any harm. Another elder stated it doesn't matter.

"What has been done, cannot be undone."

All the elders agreed and looked despondent. Amblin-Elu asked the elders if there was any way that she could avert the clan from being judged by her actions. Should she go and ask Andriel for her forgiveness. The elders told her, that from what they know about this couple, they have probably already forgiven her. To reveal to her that she has miscarried would injure them both again, making the judgement worse. They did say that the child needs to know, because he is now a Sister.

Amblin-Elu went home with a heavy heart. Her daughter saw she was upset and left her alone. Her husband had never seen her this upset before. She was not this distraught, when she saw her mother killed, and became Clan Mother. He tried to comfort her, and she told him what she did. He could not understand why she was so upset, it was an innocent mistake. Amblin-Elu told him he did not understand. She had hurt a special woman, and now the clan would have to pay for what she did. Her intentions do not matter, it is what she did that counted. Amblin-Elu cried herself to sleep that night. The second time she did that, since her mother died. Tragedy was coming to her people, and she could not stop it. It was worse because she is its cause.

The next day she found the children. She told her daughter and her niece that she needs to speak to Krillgan for a moment, and asked for some privacy. Krillgan did not want to talk to her, but she is Ludia's mother, and Ludia is a good friend. He did not care that she was the Clan Mother. So he stood where he was. She knelt down so that they could talk face to face. She asked Krillgan if he had detected any life in his mother's tummy. Krillgan said he did not know. There is so much life on this planet, that he can hardly detect the little bits of life inside of him. He would have to focus his attention if he wanted to detect life in her tummy. Amblin-Elu, looked at the ground, then she looked at Krillgan.

"I did something bad yesterday."

"I know."

"No. I did something really, really, really bad yesterday."

Krillgan could see the tears in her eyes.

"What I'm telling you is not a secret, so you can tell your parents if you think you should. But I think if you tell them, you will hurt them almost as much as I did yesterday. I am telling you because you are a Sister. I think your mother was pregnant, and I caused her to lose the baby. I'm so very, very sorry. I wish that I did not do what I did. But what has been done cannot be undone."

Krillgan had tears in his eyes, because he really wanted a brother or sister. The Clan Mother was surprised to hear him utter the last phrase with her. She told Krillgan that she was not going to ask his forgiveness, because she does not deserve to be forgiven. Krillgan sensed that she was deeply hurt by what she had done. He looked at her and said,

"But I do forgive you, because it is the right thing to do."

Amblin-Elu hugged Krillgan, and they both cried.

Andriel and Chitrah saw the Clan Mother hugging Krillgan. After the Clan Mother let go of him, he saw them, and went up to them. While she went to the two girls. Andriel and Chitrah asked him, what was that about? He told them that she was really upset with herself, because she had hurt them really bad, and did not deserve to be forgiven. He said he forgave her anyway, so she hugged him to thank him. He did not tell his parents that she believed that Andriel had been pregnant, but wasn't anymore. He knew the Clan Mother was right, he would hurt them a lot if he told them. Andriel and Chitrah both told him that they also forgive her, and he can tell her that the next time he sees her.

The three children loved using the force, especially to help them get around and explore things that they have never explored before. They would cover in one day, what would normally take the average adult three days' worth of hiking to cover. One day they had gone farther than they had ever gone before. They forgot to stop and rest, and really needed to take a nap, when suddenly they stumbled across a big bull Malkloc. As soon as the Malkloc saw them, it started chasing after them. The children could run faster than the Malkloc using the force, but had trouble doing so, because they were tired. Especially Diennu, because she was the youngest, and therefore the weakest, not being able to connect to the force as easily as her two friends. Krillgan noticed her struggling and started sharing his strength with her, something he had never done before.

They both knew that he could not keep this up for very long. There was no way they could make it all the way back to the village, before the Malkloc caught up with them. Krillgan sensed a large life force, and yelled at Ludia to change her direction, while he helped Diennu to follow. He really hoped it was not another Malkloc, or they would be in a real lot, of trouble. As they drew closer, Krillgan sensed that it was a Rancor. He could not sense a human near it, so it must be a wild one. He hoped little children were not on its menu today. They found it on the far side of a clearing. It was bigger than the average midland Rancor. More like a smaller upland Rancor. The Rancor was surprised by the three children running up to it, then speaking to it, asking it for help. Even though it was hungry, they stirred inside of him, the need to help them. He spoke to the smallest of the children. I can hear you the best so only you speak. Diennu told the Rancor that a bull Malkloc is chasing them, and they needed his help to defeat it. The Rancor asked her how he could defeat it. It takes more than one Rancor to take down a Malkloc. They told him they would help him. He just needs to do as they tell him. He agreed.

When the Malkloc entered the clearing and saw the large Rancor, it thought that there must be a herd nearby, and the little Rancor it was chasing had returned to the herd. So it stopped and turned around to leave. The three children grabbed it by the force. They did not want this Malkloc to get away, after hurting them, and wanting to kill them. It must be punished. The Malkloc knew something was holding it back from leaving. If it did not face the adult Rancor, it would catch it from behind and kill it. So it decided to charge the adult Rancor and trample it. Then it would trample the little Rancor. Maybe then it could leave before the rest of the herd arrived. Diennu told the Rancor to bring its hands together and raise them up high. When she tells it to, it must smash the Malkloc's head into the ground, than move quickly out of its way. The Rancor was nervous, this was a very big Malkloc, and it was charging, if he did not react quickly enough, it could trample him to death. Krillgan gave Diennu the signal, and she told the Rancor to strike now. The Rancor hammered down hard on the Malkloc's head, then tried getting out of its way. The Malkloc's jaw hit the ground, causing its head to roll along the ground while the body continued moving forward. This caused the Malkloc to break its own neck. With the head acting as both the anchor and pivot, the dead Malkloc flipped over onto its back, sliding on the ground until it came to a stop. Then it rolled over to one side.

The Rancor was clipped by the Malkloc's hind leg but was too excited to notice. He ran up and punched the Makloc in the gut. When it did not react, the Rancor ripped it open, and started eating its liver, his favourite part of the animal. After it had gulped down a few mouthfuls, Krillgan felt it was safe to approach it, and asked it if it was injured anywhere. The Rancor stopped eating for a moment and looked at the purple child. Suddenly it felt the stinging in its shoulder, and told the child that it could feel some pain in its shoulder. From the ground Krillgan could not tell the difference between Malkloc blood, and Rancor blood. He asked the Rancor to hold out its arm, so that he could climb up and look. The Rancor did as it was told, while it held a piece of liver in its other hand that it was chewing on. When Krillgan climbed up its arm, it found the gashes the Malkloc made, when it clipped the Rancor with its hind foot. Krillgan put his hands over the gashes, and healed the Rancor. The Rancor felt that its shoulder had stopped stinging. It stopped eating to watch what this purple child was doing. When Krillgan finished healing the Rancor's gashes. He asked it if it was hurting anywhere else. The Rancor asked the purple child, if he just healed him? Krillgan said "yes".

Ludia told the Rancor, that they were from the Singing Mountain Clan. Did he want them to introduce him to their Herd Mother? The Rancor quickly shoved the rest of the pieces of liver it had in its hand, into its mouth, and almost swallowed it without chewing. He told the child that he would like that. Being part of a herd was more important than eating right now. He had heard that this herd was the largest, and always had plenty of food for its members. It has never sent any Rancor away from its herd, for lack of food, since it joined with the humans.

The three Sisters and their Rancor, that were outside guarding the main gate of the village. Saw this Rancor approaching the village, at a faster pace than a Rancor could run on its own, but they did not see any Sister helping it. They tensed not knowing what to do. They did not think it was a mad Rancor, because it was not behaving erratically. It was moving with purpose. It wasn't until it went down into a dip in the trail that they could make out three small heads on its back. Kreen Raek started laughing, it could only be her three charges. When the Rancor stopped in front of the guards. The three children sat up higher on the Rancor's back. Ludia said that they want to take their new friend to the Herd Mother. Krillgan said that he killed a really big Malkloc. Diennu said that he saved their lives. Kreen told the other two guards that she will be responsible for them. She could hardly wait to hear their story. They followed her into the village, into the Rancor area, and headed to the Herd Mother. The adult Rancor inside the den area, saw the three children on the new Rancor's back, and followed them. Rancor love to hear a good story, and this promised to be a good one. Kreen got down off of her Rancor, and bowed to the Herd Mother to show respect, and told her that her three children had brought her a new Rancor.

The three children had decided that Krillgan would be their spokesperson because he was the oldest. They got down off of the Rancor, and followed Kreen's lead and bowed to the Herd Mother. Krillgan started telling her their story. The other Rancor were a bit disappointed, because Krillgan had not yet learnt how to speak to all of them at once. Krillgan was being diplomatic, and told the Herd Mother that they were all tired from running all day, when they accidentally encountered a large bull Malkloc. The Malkloc chased them, and they were too tired to run all the way back to the village for help. They sensed the Rancor's presence, and turned to him for help.

The Herd Mother stopped Krillgan right there, and told everyone to sit down. She asked the new Rancor to continue the story, so that everyone could hear. The new Rancor had sat down with everyone else. But when he started sharing the story he had to get up to show everyone everything. They all thought he was exaggerating when he showed how big the Malkloc was, they liked the way he stood while the Malkloc was charging at him. They all thought he was a good story teller. They liked how he showed them how he brought his hands down to smash the Malkloc's head to the ground when the smallest child told him to. He then tried to get out of the Malkloc's way as it flipped over on its back, but somehow the Malkloc hit him. He showed how far the Malkloc slid, tearing up the ground, until it came to a stop. He was expecting the Malkloc to get up at any moment, because the blow he gave it to the head was not strong enough to kill it. When it did not move he went up to it and punched it in the belly. If it was alive, he expected it to move, because that was its soft spot. When it did not move, he ripped it open and started eating the liver, because he was hungry and that was his favourite part.

From the way the other Rancor reacted, he knew he did something wrong. The Herd Mother told him to continue. He told the Herd Mother that after he had a few mouthfuls, the purple child asked him if he was injured. That's when he felt the stinging in his shoulder, he told the child this, and the child wanted to see, so he held out his arm for the child to climb up. To his surprise the child healed him. Then the quiet child (he pointed at Ludia) spoke up and asked if he would like to meet their Herd Mother, he stopped eating and said yes. The Herd Mother asked if there was any of the liver left to eat. He said that there was more than he could eat all at once.

The Herd Mother spoke to two Rancor to go get the Malkloc. They knew where it was from the story. Krillgan spoke up and said that two were not enough. The Herd Mother was surprised, she thought that they were exaggerating in the storytelling. She asked Krillgan if four where enough. Krillgan replied, "Only if two Sisters are strengthening them." The other two children nodded their head in agreement. The Herd Mother thought that the Malkloc looked big, because they were so small. She decided to humour the children and asked Kreen if two Sisters could accompany the four Rancor. Kreen understood that she was doing this for the children, but agreed to arrange for two Sisters to accompany them.

After they left, the Herd Mother asked the new Rancour, if he was still hungry? He said yes! Which made all the female Rancor laugh, to them it seemed that the male Rancor were always hungry, even when they were full. The Herd Mother asked one of the children if they could go to the kitchen and bring back a porridge cake for this Rancor to try. Diennu got up and ran to the kitchen. She came back with two different types for the Rancor to try. After he tried one, the Herd Mother told him that this is what they normally eat in the morning. He replied that it tastes good, but he would need more than one. Which made all the other Rancor laugh. Diennu gave him the other porridge cake to try.

The Herd Mother was starting to get impatient. She thought they should have been back by now. A while later, they heard a commotion at the gate. A Rancor came from the gate area and told the Herd Mother that the Malkloc's body was too big to fit through the gate. The Sisters would have to lift it up and over the gate.

When the Malkloc's body was brought into the den area, all the Rancor were impressed. It really was as big as they all said. They could not believe that he killed it all by himself. The Herd Mother asked the new Rancor to bring her a piece of the liver. That's how he found out that it was her favourite part, as well. As Herd Mother, she gets to select the first piece of any kill. He brought her a big piece, and told her that there was still more if she wanted it. After she finished the piece, the Herd Mother asked the other female Rancor if there was any reason that they should not accept this new Rancor into their herd. None of them commented, so the Herd Mother asked the new Rancor to approach her.

Ludia and Diennu asked, "What are they doing now?"

Krillgan answered, "I think they are having sex."

"What's that?"

"I don't know. My father said he would tell me about it when I'm older. He said that many animal species have sex, including humans. I can tell you that the reason they are doing it, is because they are rubbing their bodies together. The Rancor identify everyone by how they smell, even us. Because this Rancor is new to the herd, and they don't know his smell yet. He could be attacked and killed. But because he will have the Herd Mother's smell on him, and everyone knows the Herd Mother's smell, no one will attack him, and they will get used to his smell."

Kreen was so glad that she did not have to explain what was happening, to the children. Krillgan did a much better job of it then she could have. He has special parents that are willing to talk with him about this stuff at his age, and still keep him innocent.

Ludia told the other children that she may have seen her parents have sex once. She told them that she woke up at night and had to go to the latrine. She had never gone to the latrine by herself before and went to her parents' bedroom to ask her mother to go with her. She saw her father on top of her mother, and heard her mother moan. At first she thought he was hurting her. But mother is way stronger than father. If he was hurting her, she could easily have thrown him off of her. Then she saw them kiss, and knew everything was okay. Mother will never let father kiss her when she is angry at him. So she left the bedroom and went to the latrine by herself.

Kreen told Mother everything she overheard the children say, when she gave her report the next day. When Mother blushed from what her daughter said, Kreen knew that she was human after all.

After the sex, the Herd Mother asked the children, if one of them wanted to be bondmate to this Rancor? Everyone expected that Krillgan would choose to be his bondmate, because he was the oldest. They were surprised when Diennu spoke up and said that she should be bondmate. It was her life that he saved. Krillgan and Ludia, were both still strong enough, that they could have made it to the village. She was the one that was too tired and had to stop running. The other children agreed with her. The Herd Mother asked Diennu, if she had a name for him. She said his name is Protector, because he is her protector. When the Herd Mother told all the Rancor what the name meant, they all thought it was a good name.

Captain Richard was as proud as a man could be on his wedding day. He had made his way back to Manaan after dropping the family off on Dathomir. He told the Selkath elders that the family was safe and happy. They refilled the bottle they gave him, as promised. He also told the elders he was retiring, which did not surprise them. Now it was his wedding day.

He was very happy to see the Commodore and his wife. He was sorry his group leader could not make it. He will have to ask the Commodore about Kenny at the reception. Right now his beautiful wife to be, was walking down the aisle towards him, and Bikto was standing as his best man. Fred had given him a hard time, because as first officer, he thought he should have had that honour. He had to explain to Fred, that Bikto had been on every crew he had, since before he purchased the Fenelar Phoenix. He was in even more of a huff, when he was told he would not be taking over as Captain.

The Captain and Cothia had instructed the government official conducting the ceremony, that they wanted the shortest version possible. They were not young, and neither were their guests. The guy delivered. In two minutes it was over. They basically agree to be husband and wife, and kissed to seal the agreement. The kiss was almost as long as the ceremony, because they wanted a long and happy marriage.

They greeted their guests, as they went from the new chapel, straight to the reception hall. It was interesting to hear how many husbands wished their wedding ceremony had been this short. When the Commodore came through the line, Captain Richard asked him if Group Leader Kenny was alright, because he did not see him here. Commodore Radcliff told him that Kenny had also recently married, and his new bride could not make the trip. So he decided to stay with her on Yitabo. Captain Richard asked him to pass along his congratulations to Kenny. If the Republic and Sith decide to ease things up, then he would like to bring his bride to meet him. The Commodore said that Kenny would really like that.

Captain Richard decided to take a shot in the dark. He asked the Commodore, if he had ever met a Mrs. Grimshaw? The Commodore looked at him, "Know her. I married her. This lovely creature your wife is talking to, used to be Mrs. Grimshaw, until she agreed to be Mrs. Radcliff. How do you know that name?" The Captain had to squeeze Cothia's hand real hard to keep her from launching herself at Mrs. Radcliff, and giving her hugs and kisses.

Richard called over one of the girls helping with the serving, and asked her to seat the Commodore and his wife at their table, as their special guests during their wedding reception.

After they left. The Captain turned to his bride and kissed her. He whispered in her ear that he was sorry that he hurt her, but it is very important that Mrs. Radcliff not know, that we know she is Andriel's mother. Cothia had tears in her eyes, not just from the pain that Richard caused in her hand, but because of the pain in her heart. At least she will be at their table, and she will get a chance to know her.

After they greeted all the guests. Richard called all the girls that were helping with the serving, and had met Andriel, to a meeting in the Chapel. He told them that the Commodore's wife, was Andriel's adoptive mother. They cannot let her know that they know that. But it is okay for them to treat her special, because she was a guest at their table. All the girls were looking forward to meeting her, and were happy that she would be sitting with Madam, and the Captain.

The Commodore thought that he and his wife were being treated special, because of his relationship with the Captain during the last Mandalore War. He was surprised to find that the new bride chose to sit beside his wife, rather than beside the groom, and were separated from each other by the best man, and his fiancé, on one side, and the Commodore and his wife on the other.

The Commodore found out from the Captain that he had met an interesting couple and their young son at a spaceport, and had a chance to share a meal with them, and a cup of tea. While they were waiting for their next flight. They told him about visiting Yitabo while they were just newly married, and had been very well received by a Mrs. Grimshaw, but they never mentioned anything about the Commodore. The Commodore told him that no one on Yitabo knows him by his military rank, and he tries to keep a very low profile. His wife never heard their conversation, because she was too busy talking to the bride about her dress.

Mrs. Radcliff told Cothia that the design looks very familiar, she would not be surprised if she knew the designer. Cothia told her, that her onsite dressmaker had gotten her hands on the designs, by an unknown designer. They wished they could meet the designer, to thank them, and to get more designs from them. Cothia called over the dressmaker, who was helping as a server. She introduced her to Mrs. Radcliff, saying that she too would like to meet the unknown designer of the wedding dress. The dressmaker picked up on what Madam was saying. She told Mrs. Radcliff that the outfit she was wearing, was her own interpretation of one of the designs. Mrs. Radcliff said that she could see the inspiration, and liked what she did with it. She also complimented her on her sewing ability. The dressmaker told her that she had received some instruction, encouragement, and inspiration, from a special lady when she first started. It was a pity she was only passing through. She would have liked to have been further trained by her. Mrs. Radcliff sighed, she told them that this type of seamstress is very rare. Like her daughter Andriel. At least her daughter had a chance to touch a lot of lives.

The dressmaker excused herself, and said she had to go, as tears started filling her eyes. She found a place where she could cry, then freshened herself, and went back to serving. She was afraid to go back to Madam's table. She was afraid that she would start crying on Mrs. Grimshaw's shoulder and give everything away.

The Commodore noticed that his wife was getting more attention from the servers than even the bride and groom. It was almost like she was the bride's mother. Then he figured it out. At the end of the reception. The Commodore asked the Captain, if he knows whether the family he met at that spaceport, ever made it to where they were going. The Captain said that as far as he knew, they arrived safe and sound. He was smiling, because he knew the Commodore figured it out.

When they arrived back on Yitabo. Mr. Radcliff called a family meeting. He told everyone that he has good news. Andriel, Chitrah, and little Krillgan, have arrived safely on a planet where the Sith will never find them. Emily stared at her husband. She asked him how he knew this. He told her, that he and the Captain communicated. Kenny smiled, this took him back years. They learnt to talk with the ones they trusted, because they were never sure if the other people listening could be trusted.

Emily asked him, if Captain Richard told him where they are? He said no. It was too dangerous to ask. Emily was really upset, "You didn't ask him where my daughter and grandson are. You know how much they mean to me. How could you not ask?" "Emily you know that Kenny and I will do everything in our power to keep you and Bacgruta safe. What you don't know is what we have already done. Those nice young ladies serving you at the wedding banquet, don't have anyone to protect them, like you do. Was it right for me to obtain information about something you should not know?"

Emily looked confused and asked Rudy to explain himself.

"Why do you think the bride choose to sit beside you, rather than her husband? Why do you think all the young ladies were giving you better service, than either the bride or groom were getting?" Emily turned red, she hadn't noticed. It never occurred to her that the bride was giving her all her attention. She just thought that they were all being very friendly. Rudy told her that when they were in line after the wedding ceremony, the Captain asked him if he knew a Mrs. Grimshaw. "I told him that I knew her quite well, because I married her." When the bride heard that you were Mrs. Grimshaw, the Captain actually hurt his bride to keep her from doing anything stupid. "There were a lot of people at that banquet who would sell their own mothers to slavers, if they could be sure it would put food on their table for a month. All the young women who were doting on you, have all met Andriel. If I would have mentioned Andriel's name. Then all those young women would have been in danger of being kidnapped, tortured, and murdered. By bounty hunters wanting to collect the double bounty on Andriel, Chitrah, and Krillgan. I know that Andriel would have been very upset if she found out that we did that."

Emily felt humbled. She did not want to be the one, to cause harm to all those nice people. She knew Rudy was right. She had the news she needed. Her daughter and family were safe. They did not have to worry about the Sith taking their baby.

Chitrah had arranged with the Clan Mother to only train the people who were responsible for training everyone else in martial arts. The only exception was that he continued to train his son, so he trained the two girls that were learning to be Sisters with him. The other thing he did, after consulting with all of the trades people, including the women responsible for the kitchen, was to talk to the Clan Mother about harnessing the waterfall that was falling from the temple level, to the village level. A height of around five meters. He wanted to build a water wheel to harness this energy. They could use the energy to power a flour mill, the blacksmiths' bellows, and the saws and lathes the carpenters use. He was sure that they would find additional uses for the energy, once it was built. He showed the Clan Mother the detailed drawings he made, along with the breakdown of the different parts each trade would need, to make for this to work.

When they did a walk around, so Chitrah could explain what he physically wanted to do at each site, they found a cavity behind the waterfall. Because the opening was small, and no life energy could be detected. The three children were allowed to be the first to explore it. They were taught how to make cold force light, at a much younger age, than anyone had been taught before. Diennu really struggled making it, but was told by her mother not to worry, because they don't normally teach it until they are usually five years older than her, and some of them even have a hard time. Ludia also struggled, but seemed to do a little better. Krillgan caught on quickly, and was able to hold it for quite a while. The mothers found that if they help their daughters start it, in their daughters' hands, they could usually keep it going for a long time. When the Clan Mother felt they were ready, she let them go in. When the children were inside, Amblin-Elu, and her sister Butashe, stayed by the opening, and got to see that it was a long ways in. The children did not stay too long, because it was very cold inside. They said that they could see their breaths inside. Chitrah was rather excited about this. He told the Clan Mother that it would be an excellent cold storage area. It would be like a root cellar, but colder. The ale brewers though that it would be an excellent place to store their ale, and convenient.

The Clan Mother asked Chitrah if he thought they should just tunnel a larger opening into it. Chitrah told her that they have to be careful how they cut an opening into it. Cold air is similar to water, in that it is heavier than regular air, and flows. If they just cut an opening, and are not careful. They could cause all the cold air to flow out and warm air would flow in to replace it. Eventually it would warm up to the point that it would have no benefits as a place for cold storage. She asked him what he suggested. He said the children need to go back in, but this time they should be wearing furs. They will need to have ropes with them, so that they can make measurements inside. From the rope measurements, they can know how big it is inside, and how best to tunnel access to it. The children who were drinking hot tea to warm up, and had cloaks put on them by older Sisters, said they would go back in if they had furs to keep them warm. The problem was that most of the larger creatures on Dathomir, were reptilian in origin, so they had skin or scale, not fur. The Verne had coarse hair that was usually removed when they made leather from its hide. Chitrah felt that if they did not remove the hair, and he sewed two hides, hair side to hair side. He could make the children some nice warm leather coats. The Clan Mother gave him permission to talk to the tanners about that, and to make the coats. Chitrah also talked to Krillgan, to get an idea of the enormity of the cavity. From his talk with Krillgan, he figured out how to get an accurate measurement of the inside of the cavity. He had the children practise what he wanted them to do with ropes. He started with a rope that would measure the length of the cavity. To this rope they would attach cross pieces to measure the different widths, there would be other pieces to measure vertical distances. Since Krillgan was better at holding the light, the girls would be doing most of the rope work. When the girls said they were comfortable with what they were supposed to do. Chitrah finished their leather coats, and informed the Clan Mother.

It was a tighter squeeze because of the leather coats. Chitrah passed the end of the main rope to Krillgan, and passed all the smaller pieces to the girls. When they said they were finished. Chitrah pulled the main rope out with all of its attached pieces. To many of the people looking on, it looked like he was pulling out a spider's web. When the children came out, they told everyone that they were quite warm in their coats, and could have stayed in there much longer. They also did not have to worry about getting cuts or scrapes from the sharp rock edges. The next evening. Chitrah invited the children, the Clan Mother, some of the Sisters, and some of the elders. To the rooftop patio of their home. He started his computer and showed a 3D holographic image of the cavity, based on the measurements he took from what the children did with the ropes. He asked the children if this is what it looked like inside. The children said it was really close. He then added the ledge that the temple was built on and the temple itself. They could see how the cavity looked inside the rock. Chitrah said he believed that part of the stream used to flow into that cavity and out the hole. But when the first Sisters of the Singing Mountain Clan, built the temple, they sealed the upper entrance to the cavity with the temple's foundation. Diverting the stream of water around the temple. One of the Sisters asked Chitrah if it was because of the cold cavity that the temple was always cold. Chitrah told her that the Temple was cold, and the cavity was cold, for the same reason. The water flowing around the temple. He told them that water is always trying to get into the air. So it needs to absorb heat energy from its surroundings to do so. Flowing water seems to be better at doing this than stagnant water. So the water flowing around the Temple absorbs heat energy from it and the rock that it sits on. Since the cavity is inside the rock. It cools down as well. He showed on his 3D image, where he would recommend putting the entrance way into the cavity, so most of the cold air stays inside. The Clan Mother asked him if he would recommend them sealing up the way the children entered the cavity. He said yes, but only with large clear quartz crystals, so that daylight can continue to enter, for people who cannot use the force to generate light.

For most of the people who were there, this was the first time for them to be on this roof top patio, of the home built for Andriel, Chitrah, and Krillgan. Andriel offered them all a cup of tea from her own private stock of tea that she brought with her. This patio was built so that Chitrah could leave the computers there, to charge in the sun, and not have to worry about anyone trying to play with them when they are not around. They see now, that it is also a nice place to entertain friends on a pleasant evening.

To the children it was just another place where they can come to play. It was a nice place for them to practice jumping off the ledge around the patio, to the ground below, and using the force to slow them down so they don't hurt themselves. The first time they did it. Andriel happened to be on the patio, and almost had a heart attack. When she looked over the ledge to the ground below, to see if they were alright, Kreen waved up at her and told her that they all did well for their first jump. When she saw the look of concern on Mother Andriel's face. She asked the children, if they had told Mother Andriel that they would be practise jumping from her home? Krillgan said he forgot. Ludia said she forgot, too. Diennu said she forgot, too, too. Andriel said it was okay, she often forgets that they can do things she can't. So her body is used to the occasional heart attack. Kreen laughed and thanked her for understanding. Then she told her that in a few months' time, she will be teaching them to jump from the ground on to the ledge of her patio. Then she jumped up to demonstrate. Andriel told her to warn her, so that she is not there to watch. Kreen laughed and did a backflip off the ledge to the ground.

When they cut the entrance way into the cavity, they also removed all the sharp edges of rock. They enlarged the opening where the children climbed in and sealed it with quartz crystals like Chitrah recommended. What surprised everyone was that the cavity became cold enough to start freezing things for half of the year, but was not cold enough to freeze the ale. Everyone thought it was nicely chilled. But it was a lovely way to preserve berries. This took a lot of pressure off of the kitchen during berry season. There wasn't the mad scramble to make jams before the fruit spoiled. All the villages sent their excess berries to the main village to have them freeze them. They were also able to make berry combinations for jam that they were never able to do before. It was a nice trade item for the other clans because none of them could make it.

The water wheel was a success. The woman in charge of the kitchen found that they did not need as many people in the kitchen to prepare meals because of it. Their other villages would come once a cycle to grind up enough flour to last them through the cycle. Chitrah even added another belt for the kitchen, to make a pounder, to flatten the grains to make porridge for the porridge cakes. It was so easy to make porridge that it became a regular breakfast item during the colder months, and to top it off with frozen berries. When the other clans found out what Father Chitrah built for them. They asked the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan, if she could loan Chitrah to them. So that he could design and supervise the construction on improvement projects for them. In the Red Hills Clan, he built a windmill to provide the power they need.

Because wind was plentiful in the mornings, and evenings. The trades' people got into the habit of starting work earlier, and finishing later, and taking a nap during the calm of the day. In the Frenzied River Clan, he had them build an aqueduct from a portion of the river upstream, right into the heart of the main village, and built a waterwheel there. The villagers loved that they no longer had to walk down to the river to get their water. For the Misty Falls Clan, he also built an aqueduct, but from one of the lesser falls, because they considered the main falls sacred, because of all the healing plants that grow around it. For the Great Canyon Clan, he built two aqueducts, one for the main village, and one for the artisans' village, where the glassworks take place.

Things were going so well for the Singing Mountain Clan that the Clan Mother convinced herself that her clan was not going to experience judgment, because of what she had done. The Militia had arranged a demonstration for their Clan Mother. They showed their prowess in hand-to-hand combat, and they demonstrated their skill in using the clan fighting stick. To test their skills, the Clan Mother selected four of the militia, who demonstrated their skill in using the fighting stick, and she handed a fighting stick to one of her Sisters. She wanted to see who would disarm who first. The Sister knew that if the militia members disarmed her, she would be the laughing stock of the whole clan. She did not know that Clan Mother had selected her, because she was one of the better fighters amongst the Sisters, in using the fighting stick.

The five of them fought well, pride was on the line. Finally the Sister was able to disarm one of the militia. After that it became easier to disarm the other three. When she finished, everyone present clapped. The Sister knew they were not just clapping for her, they were showing their appreciation for all of their fighters. The Clan Mother asked her, if they should incorporate this type of fighting, in training clan Sisters? She definitely thought they should. They gave her quite a work out. It could only improve the fighting skills of both the militia and the clan Sisters. Clan Mother asked the Militia, why they wanted to give this demonstration. Her husband was their spokesman. He told her that the Militia wanted a chance to take the caravan to town unescorted, the way the settlements have to. The clan always has clan Sisters and militia on regular patrol throughout their territory. The caravan should travel with a horn to sound the alarm, and they can get the Rancor out of their harnesses real quick. They have to, in case there is a bull Malkloc that needs to be dealt with. They were hoping, with this demonstration, to show that they can keep a Nightsister occupied until help arrives. The next caravan is only going to be a small one, with only four carts. They will carry double the amount of militia to compensate for not being escorted.

They did not know that they were being spied upon. There was a crow in a tree that was closer than any wild crow would normally be. It was watching them intently. It was being controlled by a Nightsister.

The Clan Mother saw how important this was to the Militia, they had trained very hard, and deserved this as recognition of their efforts. She agreed, and her husband told her who would be in the caravan. All of them had taken part in the demonstration. When the day came, the carts were filled with new ale that had been heated, to kill any yeast, so it could no longer ferment. The new ale was left at the compound for the settlements. They preferred the Singing Mountain Clan's new ale, to the ale that the town has, since the new ale can be enjoyed by everyone. The settlements leave cheese in the compound in exchange. Now the Singing Mountain Clan does not need cheese, but the town does. So they will exchange tea, or anything else the Singing Mountain Clan would like, in exchange for the cheese. It's an honour system, where everyone is happy.

When the carts were loaded. The assigned teams said good bye to their family. Diennu's father Cryllon, was to ride in the first cart with Riktob. Diennu begged her father not to go on this trip, but on the next one. She told him that something was wrong, he should not go. He told her that he has to go. People were counting on him. As a member of the clan, he has the responsibility to do what he can when he can. Diennu started crying, "I know. Just don't go on this trip." Now Ludia had been proud that her father was going, because he said that it was such an important trip. But when she saw her cousin behaving this way. She became scared, and started pleading with her father not to go. The mothers did not know what was wrong with their little girls, and had to hug them so that they would let their fathers go. When they were seated in the carts. Diennu managed to break free of her mother and ran up to the cart. She told her father she loved him, and held up her arms to him. He reached down and hugged and kissed his little girl, and told her that he loves her. Then he asked her to tell her mother that he loves her too. Amblin-Elu let Ludia go so that she could do the same. When Diennu, came back to her mother, she hugged what she could reach of her, and told her that father loves her.

Her mother knelt down, and hugged her back. Then she asked her, "why all the tears?"

"Because he is not coming back."

Butashe looked at her older sister with the look that said, "Do something!"

Amblin-Elu wondered what. If she sends out an escort based on the tears of a little girl, the Militia will be demoralised. She called over the Sister that was supposed to take the next patrol out. She instructed her to stay close to the caravan, but not to let them see her. Then she warned her not to get distracted. Butashe thanked her sister. She knew there was not much more she could do, without upsetting their husbands.

The caravan had Riktob and Cryllon, in the first cart. The second cart had two sisters. The oldest, Jewel, had been a Ranger with Riktob, and he always said that she was a better shot. The third and fourth carts had couples riding in each of them. The Rancor that were pulling the carts, were caravan veterans, and had bonded with the militia members, even though they were not Sisters. For the Sister and militia following the caravan, they expected this to be a very boring patrol, because the caravan stops every night. The patrols like to do most of their traveling at night. That is when they have the best success encountering a Nightsister. They figure that it was going to take five full days before they reach the fork in the trail that leads to the gate. On their own they would reach it by the morning of the fourth day.

As they approached the fork, the Sister suddenly felt compelled by the force to duck her head. As she did an arrow sailed by. She did not know if she was more surprised, that a Nightsister had just shot an arrow at her, or that a Nightsister was able to get close enough to her to shot an arrow, undetected by her. Without thinking she gave chase, and her militia ran right after her. This Nightsister was both fast and cunning, she knew where all the dense underbrush was, which would force the clan Sister's Rancor to go around. This was like chasing a Moog.

The clan Sister at the gate saw two Nightsisters heading toward the sandstone quarry. She decided to give them a friendly, neighbourly welcome, when they reached the top of the small trail. She told the militia members with her at the gate, to blow the horn, and light the signal fire, if anyone approaches the gate. Whatever they do, do not open the gate for anyone until she gets back.

When she was out of eyesight of the gate. A crow landed near the militia members, and told them in a female voice to open the gate or she will kill them. Suddenly a feeling of dread overwhelmed them. Three of them ran to open the gate, one weekly objected. The fifth one stood petrified with fear, not even able to raise the horn she was holding, to her lips, to give it a blow. When the clan Sister reached the top of the small trail. There were already two Nightsisters there waiting. They were not the two, that she saw heading to the quarry. She engaged them right away, and was disappointed that they did not try their usual tricks, and try using force lightening. They were using their force energy like she was, to keep strong and agile. After a few minutes of fighting, the other two Nightsisters showed up. They were both young, and inexperienced. It seemed to her that the two older Nightsisters were using her as a training exercise for the two younger Nightsisters. Whenever she started breaking down their guard, the two older ones would step in and force her back, allowing the younger ones to regroup.

The convoy did not know it was under attack, until a shower of arrows hit them. Cryllon was hit in his left arm, but moved to unhook the Rancor. Riktob grabbed his bow and quiver of arrows and jumped over the side of the cart, to start returning fire. Jewel in the second cart did as he did, unfortunately her sister was hit in the leg. She was better with the fighting stick then she was as an archer. Still she quickly managed to unhook the Rancor from her cart, and used the fighting stick as a crutch, until she was close enough to hit someone with it. The two couples also reacted instinctively, unfortunately the husband in the fourth cart was killed by the first barrage of arrows, as he was the closest and easiest target for the ten archers that accompanied the four Nightsisters. Riktob instinctively shot his first arrow at the first enemy archer he saw, before he remembered to blow his horn.

The Patrol had chased the Nightsister to the edge of the escarpment that separates the midlands from the lowlands. When they heard the horn. The Sister was very upset with herself, because she realised that she had disobeyed her Mother, and allowed herself to be distracted. All she could do now, was try and get back to the convoy as fast as she could, leaving her militia behind. She could hear the Nightsister laughing at her as she climbed down the escarpment away from her. The clan Sister fighting the four Nightsisters also heard the horn, but could not disengage from fighting them without exposing herself. She was comforted in knowing the sound of the horn did not come from the gate, and fought on. Jewel anticipated that Riktob would go after the closest target, so she went after the farthest ones. She had killed three enemy archers before Riktob had put down the horn, and started firing his bow again. The enemy archers had panicked at losing four of their members so quickly, and started looking around to see who was targeting them. This allowed Riktob and Jewel to take out the last six before they fired another arrow. Those quick firing Ranger exercises paid off. The four caravan Rancor attacked the Nightsisters and their Rancor. The surviving militia started harassing them as well.

Riktob remembered his niece's reaction, when the caravan departed. He believed in his heart that he was not going to survive this day, so he was determined to make his death count. He ran up the back of the closest caravan Rancor, which was grappling with a Nightsister's Rancor. He launched himself at the Nightsister, smacking her in the side of her head with his cupped hand, stunning her. His body's momentum knocking her to the ground. His real target was her earring. The tangible evidence his wife would need to do whatever she did in retaliation.

The Militia was able to give the fallen Nightsister quite a beating before she recovered herself enough to run an unarmed Riktob through with her sword, attached to the end of her fighting cane. Two of the other Nightsisters had to dismount to rescue their Sister before the Singing Mountain Clan militia members killed her.

Their Nightsister Mother was the only one in the group who had a Dathomirite blade, which could kill Rancor. By the time their Mother had killed the four Rancor. The three Nightsisters had killed all the militia members. They were surprised at how well they fought. All three Nightsisters had bruises on their arms, and at least one broken finger. One of Nightsisters' Rancor had bad lacerations on it arms. But the Nightsisters' Mother forced it to be harnessed to a cart. The one Nightsister that was badly beaten preferred to ride in the cart, rather than on the back of her Rancor. Before they left, they piled all of the dead bodies of their archers on three of the carts. They did not want to leave any tangible evidence that they were the ones who attacked the caravan. Even though everyone knew that no one else would have done it.

As they headed toward the gate, the Mother sent her crow to signal her Nightsisters that they can disengage from fighting the clan Sister. When they saw the crow, the Nightsisters jumped over the thorny hedge that blocked the top of the small trail. The clan Sister was so furious with them that she used all of her force energy to launch a force lightning attack against all four of them. The thing with force lightning, is that you do not actually have to see the target. You just need to know where it is. The clan Sister was rewarded with the sounds of four distinct screams. She fried them real good.

On her way to where she heard the sound of the horn, she ran past the gate. She was surprised to see all five militia members crouched down and shivering. None of them even looked at her as she ran by. The patrol Sister was the first one to reach the ambush site. She could see the evidence on the ground that the militia members put up quite a fight. As she was checking the bodies to see if anyone was still alive. The Sister from the gate showed up. Even though she could see that the Sister from the gate was tired, she told her to go light the signal fire, they need their Mother to get here as quickly as possible.

When the signal fire was lit, every clan Sister that saw it, converged on the gate. The militia lookout, in the tower near the main village, blew his horn to indicate that the signal fire had been lit.

The Clan Mother's heart almost stopped when she heard the horn. She grabbed her daughter and headed for Andriel's home. She met Butashe there, who had brought Diennu. They both asked Mother Andriel if they could leave their daughters with her.

Both women were sprinting for the Rancor area before Andriel had a chance to reply. A confused Andriel looked at the girls and asked them if they knew what was going on. Diennu, with tears in her eyes, told Mother Andriel that her father was not coming back to her. Ludia started crying as well. Andriel got down on both her knees and opened up her arms to the girls. They both ran into her arms and started balling. Chitrah and Krillgan, who were playing on the computers on the patio, heard the crying and came downstairs. Chitrah also got down on his knees and embraced the girls and his wife. Krillgan tried using the force to envelope them all in a sense of peace, because kolto cannot heal a broken heart.

When Amblin-Elu arrived at the ambush site. She was numb inside. She knew that she had caused this. Because she hurt Andriel and Chitrah, and took away their baby. Her husband was taken from her. But why did her sister also have to lose her husband, she was innocent in this. She knelt down and hugged her husband's body to herself. She started crying, and rocking back and forth as she held him.

A Sister touched her shoulder, "Excuse me Mother. But your husband appears to be clutching something in his hand." Amblin-Elu pried open her husband's hand, and held up the earring. She told the Sister, "That she is her witness, for the next Council of Mothers that this was found in my husband's hand." The Sister acknowledged that she is the witness. She then got up and looked at the ground. She had a kindling of pride in her heart. They put up quite a fight. She followed the cart tracks back to the gate. Butashe had seen her sister's purposeful movement, and gently laid her husband's body back on the ground, and looked at what her sister looked at, than followed her sister. When the Clan Mother reached the gate. She asked the Sister in charge of the gate, when the signal fire was lit? The Sister told her that it was after the bodies were discovered. The Clan Mother pointed at the militia woman still clutching the horn. "How many passed up through the gate?" The woman wanted to deny that anyone passed through the gate, but knew there was no point in lying.

"Four Nightsisters on Rancor, and ten archers."

"How many went back down?"

"The Four Rancor were harnessed to four carts. Three of the Rancor also had three Nightsisters riding them. The fourth one was in a cart. The other three carts had bodies piled on top. We did not know how many."

"How did they get through the gate?"

"We opened it."

Butashe asked them, "Why?"

They told them about the Nightsister appearing to them in the form of a crow, and threatened to kill them, if they did not open the gate. Then they were overwhelmed with fear, and did what the Nightsister said.

Their Mother asked them if they knew any of their clan's lore. They said they did. She said that they should have known that the crow was just a crow controlled by a Nightsister. Not the Nightsister herself. If one of them would have had the sense to whack the crow with a fighting stick, they would have killed the crow, and the fear would have left them. Then they could have lit the signal fire, and clan Sisters would have been there before one of the Nightsisters could have climbed the gate.

Amblin-Elu instructed the Sister in charge of the gate, to take the horn away from the woman holding it. She went to where the signal fire had been, and took some of the ashes in her hand. She went back toward the five militia members, and passed sentence on them. "Because you valued your lives, more than the lives of your clan's men, your lives are given you along with all the pain and suffering that comes with them. From this day you are cursed." With that she blew the ashes in her hand at them.

When the ash cloud settled, everyone could see that the three women and two men, were covered in sores, and their clothes looked like they were rotting on their bodies.

The Clan Mother told them that from now, until the day they die, they will be shunned by all people. They will be totally dependent on each other to find food, and warmth. Then she ordered them to go. They hobbled away as fast as they could go.

When the Clan Mother looked back at the Sisters that were with her, she saw them staring at her with open mouths.

"Why are you looking at me like that? Its written in the book, any of you could have done it."

Then she asked the Sister in charge of the gate, what happened, why wasn't she there? The Sister told her what happened. The Clan Mother told her that she does not believe that she did anything wrong. But the militia members are her responsibility. She most follow them to warn other people away from them, so that they do not become infected. She must also burn each body when they die, to eliminate the chance of the disease spreading. The clan will send Sisters to supply her with provisions, and to visit with her, so that she does not feel like she has been abandoned by the clan. When the last body is burnt, all her clothes must be burnt as well, because they will be contaminated, and she must be purified. But first, she must give them warning so that they can do it properly, and no one will be hurt.

She asked her Mother, if she was in danger of becoming infected herself? Mother told her that this disease cannot infect force users, but if she is not properly cleansed, she will carry the disease to other people who can become infected, including their own villages. The Sister thanked her, and left her to keep an eye on her charges. The Clan Mother sent a runner to warn the town about the infected people in the hills southeast of town.

The Sister in charge of the patrol approached the Clan Mother, and asked her what her punishment was? Since she disobeyed her, and allowed herself to be distracted by a Nightsister. The Clan Mother said that she will allow Butashe to decide her fate.

Butashe told her, that she is going to ask her to do the most difficult thing that she will ever do in her life. She must explain to all the children that lost a parent today, why she wasn't there to help them. The Sister started crying.

"I can't do that. Please ask me to do something else."

"But you must. You know they will ask you. You will find them very forgiving if you tell them the truth."

The Sister said that she will accept her punishment. Then she hugged Butashe and told her she was sorry. Then she hugged the Clan Mother and told her the same thing.


	9. Chapter 9

©2016

Amblin-Elu took her husband's body with her on her Rancor, because it would be the fastest way to carry him back to the main village. Butashe did the same. Sisters who were near kin to the other dead militia members, took their bodies. The hardest bodies to bring back were the Rancor. The Clan Mother said that they deserve as much respect as the militia did, because they also died fighting. It ended up taking two Rancor with their Sisters strengthening them, to bring back each of the Rancor bodies. Because they have no way to preserve dead bodies, funeral pyres were built for all the dead, as soon as they arrived back at the main village.

The Herd Mother was happy that the dead Rancor were being shown the same respect as the humans. Normally they just leave the dead Rancor out in the woodlands for the scavengers to fight over.

Every militia member left at least one child behind, some left more. When you include the Rancor bodies, all the pyres would be lit by their children.

When they were getting ready. The Clan Mother noticed a crow, fly over and land on top of the palisade surrounding the village. As if it wanted to watch. The Clan Mother killed it with force lightning. Everyone swore they heard a woman scream. The Clan Mother picked the dead crow up with the force, and carried it a ways down the trail, then burnt it with force lightning until it turned completely to dust. She did not want its dead body contaminating any of the funeral pyres. When she returned she gave the children the signal to light the pyres. As they were burning, she met with the elders. She asked them, if they knew if all of the children had homes where adults will look after them, since there were two couples in the caravan whose children were now orphans? The elders said that all the children were taken in by family. The Clan Mother told them that they need to keep an eye on them, so that they are not abused in the future. Then she asked about the children of the people she cursed, do they have anyone to look after them. They told her that they are still looking into that, people are not very quick to admit that they are related to them.

The ashes from the funeral pyres were collected and stored in the temple until the next planting. The book of Knowledge and Wisdom was also placed in the temple, and opened to the page that the curse was written on. Anyone who could read the Kwa symbols, also knew that they could have uttered the curse. While the book of Knowledge and Wisdom, was in the temple, along with the ashes. Two Sisters were assigned to guard the temple, each day.

Mother had told the elders what she was planning to do in retaliation for this attack. To do nothing would be to declare yourself weak, and would result in more unprovoked attacks. The elders knew this and gave her their blessing.

It was not hard to find volunteers, to want to punish the Nightsisters. She turned down two thirds of the Militia, and only took a handful of Sisters. All the clan Sisters wore Rancor armour, and had Dathomirite swords. (The Singing Mountain Clan had more Dathomirite swords than any other clan. Because they found more Dathomirite in their mountains, than any other clan.) The Sisters also wore their three silk flags on the end of three poles that were attached to the back of their armour. Each flag had three emblems on it. The emblem of their clan, the emblem of their family, and their own personal emblem. The flags could be of any colour or colours of their choosing, except yellow. Yellow was the colour of the flag they wore when going to visit settlements, so that they would not be challenged by the Sisters of the clan, whose territory they entered. With the Sisters' flags, and the ribbons the militia had on the top tips of their bows, so that they could judge the wind's direction, before releasing their arrows, it looked like a parade when the small army left the main village. They were accompanied by two Rancor pulling carts with their food supplies. (Mainly porridge cakes for the Rancor's breakfast.) Because the Militia was accompanying them, they had to move much slower than Mother would have liked. She did not need the Militia, but felt that they earned the right to come along.

The plan was simple, the Nightsisters had two villages. They were both in Singing Mountain Clan territory. They were going to take one out permanently. If another clan was willing to let the Nightsisters build a village in their territory, they can go right ahead. The one they were going to take out was the newer one, the one closest to the gate. The Nightsisters had claimed that it was the natural outgrowth of the camp that used to be in that vicinity, for the slaves that used to work the sandstone quarry. The one the Singing Mountain Clan had given permission for. Unfortunately, the Council of Mothers sided with them, in the interest of peace. This is the village that they have been using, to make up the archers they used on their failed attacks over the years. It seems that harvesting the grain from its fields is not a high priority. The hard part in taking out the village, was in not killing the slaves that lived there. The only ones they wanted to kill, are any Nightsisters they find in the area.

They encountered no Nightsisters along the way. The extra patrols that had been sent out after the attack would come by for breakfast, and reported no Nightsister activity. As they approached the village, the Clan Mother organised the Militia into small groups, and each group had a designated flag bearer. Each Sister was asked to surrender two of her identity flags to the Militia. On the outside it would look like each Sister commanded at least two groups of Militia. In reality it was to make the villagers believe that the army was bigger than it was. With the Militia spread out, and all the silk flags waving in the wind. Maybe they can get them to surrender, without anyone having to be killed.

Amblin-Elu had three Sisters get off their Rancor, and sneak around behind the village. Kiranna Raek, was in charge of the three. With her daughter Kreen, and family friend Tannath-Elu. When they arrived at the top of the escarpment behind the village. They saw two Nightsisters fleeing through the swamp below. When the Nightsisters sensed they had been spotted. They stopped and turned, and started taunting the clan Sisters.

Kreen asked the two Sisters, what would happen if they shot their arrows at that tree. The other two saw the tree she pointed at, and its relative position to the Nightsisters. They knew what it was that she was suggesting they do. The two Nightsisters where standing, one slightly ahead of the other. By firing at the tree, than changing the target for the arrows at the last minute. Targeting the Nightsister that was farthest away. The Nightsister that was closest to them, would actually be in the way of the flight of the arrows, and might not know it, until it was too late. The two Nightsisters laughed when they saw that the clan Sisters had fired arrows at them. They kept asking each other if they were the target. When neither one sensed they were the target. They wondered what the clan Sisters were shooting at. Then the one Nightsister screamed that she was the target, but she could not see the arrows because her Sister was in the way. She pushed her Sister out of the way because she could not see the arrows, which may have saved her Sister's life. But earned her an arrow in her own side.

The Nightsister that was knocked aside took one arrow in the arm, and one in the hip, instead of one in the chest, and two in the abdomen. The two Nightsisters kept swearing at each other, as they made their way through the swamp to their Glass Mountain. Neither Nightsister trusted the other to help them, and not make the wounds worse.

The clan Sisters were pleased with their archery skills. Now that they were in place, it was time to signal the Clan Mother. Kiranna threw a ball of force fire up in the air. Kreen formed a water lance out of the water she was carrying. Something she had recently learnt, and threw it at the fire ball, to extinguish it, as soon as it reached its highest point.

When the Clan Mother saw the fire ball, then saw it disappear. She knew her Sisters were in position. She approached within bow shot range for militia, of the village's palisade. She asked for them to surrender. One of the villagers shot an arrow at the Clan Mother, the guy beside him slapped him on the head and called him an idiot. She was only talking. The guy who shot the arrow told his companion that the Nightsisters said that they cannot surrender. The guy who slapped him pointed out that the Nightsisters were not there, and he did not want to die. One of the other men on the wall. Interrupted the two arguing men, "Guys she just caught the arrow."

The Clan Mother asked them, if they wanted their arrow back? They said it wasn't necessary. She told them she insisted, and threw it back. It thudded into the palisade, just below where they were, with a thud that made them think she had shot it with a strong bow, and all she did was throw it. The men on the wall started arguing. The one group quoting the Nightsisters, "If they surrender they die." The other group stating what they thought was obvious, "If they don't surrender they die." The guy who shot the first arrow, told them he did not care what they said, he wasn't surrendering. He got up and started shooting arrows at the Clan Mother. The Clan Mother caught the next arrow and threw it back at the shooter, at the same time catching the rest of his arrows. The arrow she threw caught him between the eyes, just above the brow ridge on the skull. He fell back off the wall, dead.

The guy who slapped him, asked her, why she did that? She told him that the guy had no respect for her. He yelled back, that he was just scared. She asked him what he was afraid of. He yelled back, the Nightsisters. She responded, "He was more afraid of the cowards who ran away, because I am here, than he was of me. Then he was a fool who deserved to die."

"But the Nightsisters boasted that they killed eight of your people."

"Were any of the Nightsisters hurt?"

"Yes, three were injured, one was beaten pretty badly."

"What they did not tell you, was that they ambushed eight of my Militia members. Those are the men and women standing on the ground behind me. They are not force users. And they attacked the four Rancor pulling their carts. Plus they had the assistance of ten of your archers. My eight militia members were able to kill all ten archers, and injure three of the Nightsisters almost killing one. While the caravan's Rancor wrestled with the Rancor the Nightsisters were riding, holding them at bay. Does that sound like they should be boasting?"

The men on the wall were talking. They did not say they killed any clan Sisters, they just said they killed clan members.

"Did they tell you that four of their Nightsisters, attacked just one of my clan Sisters, on the escarpment above the quarry, and it was them that ran away. Maybe you smelt the smell of burnt flesh, when they snuck past your village. You have to decide, who deserves your respect. The cowards who run away. Or the people they run from."

After considerable talk, one of them yelled back, "We are sorry. We are afraid if you, and how powerful you are. But we are also afraid of the Nightsisters, who have been hurting us all our lives. We can't surrender."

The Clan Mother expected this, programmed fear is hard to overcome. She signalled three of her Sisters to begin the bombardment. The three Sisters started throwing balls of force fire at the main gate. What the villagers did not know was that the Sisters were throwing the smallest fire balls they could. The villagers heard the continuous, thump, thump, thump, as the fire balls hit the gate, and flames shot through the cracks in the doors that made up the gate. Many of the men on the wall, closed their eyes. Waiting for the sound of the gate bursting open, and the screaming horde from the Singing Mountain Clan pouring through. None of them saw the three clan Sisters that jumped up onto the back of the palisade. One jumped down into the village, and headed to where the Rancor where kept. The other two ran along the wall, giving a force tap to the side of the head of every man they encountered, knocking them out.

Kreen chose to go to the Rancor, because she was not good with the force tap. The elders kept telling her she was tapping too hard. She would turn their brains to mush. At the den she found two beastmasters. One male, and one female. They fought her like they were mad men. She tried her best, to try and subdue them. It wasn't until she saw them foaming at the mouth, that she knew they had been poisoned. She took the daggers she had in each of her boots, and stabbed them both in the heart. That was the fastest way she knew of, to put them out of their misery.

She told the Clan Mother later, that she though she heard one of them say "thank you", when they passed away.

When the Sisters signalled, that they controlled the village. The Clan Mother stopped the bombardment. When she approached the main gate of the village. Kreen opened it for her. The village women stared at her. It took six off the village's strongest men, to lift the heavy wooden crossbeam that they used for barring the gate. She lifted it all by herself.

When the Clan Mother entered she pointed to the gates, and told the Sisters behind her. "See, it is only charred. That's because they were made from trees from our forest."

Kreen told Mother about the two beastmasters, and how they were poisoned. Mother got off her Rancor and followed Kreen to the den. The three Rancor inside were sitting just like she told them. When Mother put her nose to the mouths of the two beastmasters, she was able to identify the combination of poisons, they were forced to swallow. The Clan Mother told Kreen that what was given to the beastmasters, worked too fast for an antidote to be given. The side-affect was, that the body released extremely high levels of adrenaline, to try to counteract the effects of the poison. Making them almost invincible for a short period of time.

As they approached where the women and children were huddled together. One of them asked the Clan Mother if the men were all dead. She told her, "only the one with the arrow in his forehead". She said that the Nightsisters told them that they were evil, and that the Singing Mountain Clan would burn them alive. The Clan Mother looked at her. "They have been lying to you all your life, and you still believe them?"

"We don't know what to believe."

"Believe that all the men but one, are still alive, that were on the wall. The two beastmasters are both dead because they were forced to drink a strong mixture of poisons. My Sister was forced to kill them, to stop their suffering. They were well beyond the point that an antidote would work. You can also believe that I'm going to burn this village to the ground. You can stay inside if you want to."

The Clan Mother had all the men brought down off of the wall and secured, so they don't try and kill themselves. She asked the women and children if there were any other beastmasters in the village. A young boy of just over five years of age came forward. (Around eight standard years.) He said that he has always wanted to be a beastmaster. "The couple looking after the Rancor had no children of their own, so they let me work with them, when no Nightsisters were around." The Clan Mother asked him to go in the Rancor's den and keep them company. They will be less upset when he is with them. Right now they think that they may be lunch for our Rancor.

They found their carts, and noticed one keg of new ale missing. They asked the women of the village where it was. They said the Nightsister Mother broke open one keg for her victory celebration. She took a swallow, then spit it out in disgust. She asked us what it was. We told her it was a slaves' drink. She left it all here, and left the village disappointed. She muttered, "All that planning, and nothing to show for it". So they repaired the keg and lowered it into the well to cool. The Clan Mother asked them how much was left in the keg? They said that there was still more than half. The Clan Mother ordered that a second keg be lowered into the well to cool since they were going to be there a few days. The villagers were happy that they had a few days reprieve, before the village would be destroyed, and asked the Clan Mother for permission to return to their homes. She told them they could, but they should also start packing whatever is important to them, because when they leave, there will be only ashes to come back to. She then arranged for four Sisters to connect their Rancor to the carts, and take them to town. They should come back with the empty carts. Because they will be needed.

The Militia members who were farmers, told the Clan Mother that a number of fields were ready to be harvested. Amblin-Elu was taught as a little girl, that it was wrong to waste food that has been given you, because it shows disrespect for the Creator, and disrespect for his creation, including the force. So she asked the militia members to start harvesting it. They will load the grain onto the carts when they return. Unfortunately the fields that are not ready will have to be destroyed. So the Nightsisters will not be able to benefit from them.

The men of the village promised the Clan Mother, that they would not try to harm themselves. They asked permission to help with the harvest. She released them.

After the first day of harvesting, the Clan Mother noticed something was wrong with all of the village men. They craved the new ale more than anyone else. They also seemed much weaker. She refused to allow them out in the fields to work anymore, and ordered them to stay in the shade of the trees in the forest. She asked them, what was wrong with them? No answer. She asked them, what did the Nightsisters do to them? She saw some of the men looking at each other when she asked that. So she knew that the Nightsisters did do something. But there was still no answer. She went to the women of the village, and begged them to tell her what the Nightsisters did, so she can help their men. When they did not answer, she became angry with them. She told them that if they know what the Nightsisters did to the men, and don't tell her, so that she can start working on a cure. Then they are the ones who are responsible for their deaths, not the Nightsisters, because their silence is killing them.

The next day, one of the men started to deteriorate faster than the others. She had the women of the village bring the straw from the harvest into the forest, to make mattresses for the men to sleep on. She noticed that they needed to keep cool. So she also had the women bring pails and pails of water from the well, for the men to drink as much as they could, and to start bathing them. Everything that was in the village that could hold water, was brought into the forest and filled. When the women still said nothing. She ordered everyone out of the village, they were going to burn it. She had the Militia haul pails of tar, from the tar pit in the southern swamp. And spread it over the village. After that, they spread tar over every field, even the ones that were harvested. While everything was burning, the first man from the village died. She ordered his body be thrown into the village, so it would burn along with everything else.

When they saw the body burning, the women finally realised, that their men were dying. They forced one of the women forward, and told her to show the Clan Mother. She handed her a packet of herbs. She told the Mother that the Nightsisters made tea from these herbs, and forced the men to drink it.

The Clan Mother opened the packet and looked at the herbs. She had tears in her eyes, when she told the women, that if they had given this packet to her when she first asked, she could have saved all the men. But now that she sees what they have drunk, she does not know if she could save any of them. If she does manage to save one, their brain might be so damaged, that they might be no better than an adult infant. That does not know how to take care of themselves.

"Then the cure is too difficult to make?"

"The cure is easy. We are surrounded by the plants that will cure them. It's just not soon enough to counteract the damage that has already been done."

Mother sent the Sisters, to gather the plants that were needed. Kreen approached Mother, and asked if she should go and get Krillgan? Kreen hated asking, because if he does help, it would make him that much more acceptable in the eyes of the other Sisters. But she saw how much this was hurting Mother, and she did not like seeing the foolish men suffer. So she asked. Mother told her to go, and have the girls stay with Mother Andriel.

After mixing the antidote, Mother had to shake it with cold water. To heat it up as a tea would destroy some of the essential oils that are needed. As one of the Sisters was going around to each man, to give them a sip. She started working on the next batch. She also arranged for some Sisters to make an enclosure around the feeble men, because she does not want anyone to see Krillgan. They are too close to the Nightsisters here, and she does not want them getting wind of his abilities. She was seeing some improvement, in that the men were not deteriorating as quickly as before, but a couple more men died.

The women asked if they could go collect plants. Mother knew it would give them something to do. She showed them each a couple of different plants to look for, they did not have the knowledge to look for all of them. She also told them not to pick more than half the leaves from any plant, because they also have other benefits, and she does not want them killed off. One of the women asked her, if it was true that a special healer was coming? She told her not to place her faith in rumours.

Kreen returned the next night with Krillgan. She was told how many more men died, and that the Militia was kept busy gathering wood for the funeral pyres. Mother walked with Krillgan, showing him which men he might be able to save, and which ones will not make it till the morning. When Krillgan touched the men, he could feel the poison in them. He could also tell that the kolto by itself was not enough. The Clan Mother saw how tired he was. She told him that he needs to rest, or he will not be able to help anyone. He took her advice, but tossed and turned most of the night, thinking about what would help the Kolto heal. He did manage to get a few good hours of sleep in before the morning. Which was more than Mother got, because she kept an eye on him.

When Krillgan woke up, he asked Mother, if it would help the Kolto heal the men, if he could mix it with the poison antidote? She asked him, how could he do that? He told her, that the only thing he could think of, was for him to eat the leaves that make up the antidote. She told him, that she heard he did not like to eat salads. He told her that he doesn't. But if it will help heal the men, he will do it.

Now the village women overheard a child's voice talking with the Clan Mother. They wondered if he was like those men, that the Nightsisters had removed the sack from under the horn of their manhood, when they were still boys. Their bodies did not mature as men do, and their voices never changed. Physically their bodies grew from being little boys, into being big boys. Their minds were just as good as any man. That was not affected. But they had no desire for sex, and the Nightsisters could not seduce them. So they stopped that experiment, and the grown boys were sent to the village, where they were a big help. A couple of them even became healers.

The Clan Mother added roasted meat and nuts to Krillgan's, salad, and had him wash it down with new ale. The salad was a little on the bitter side, but the meat and nuts did help. Mother also sent a couple members of the militia out to see if they could find some fresh berries for Krillgan. Nothing happened right away, but later Krillgan felt a change in the way the Kolto was being received by the poisoned men, it was becoming more effective. Krillgan told Mother that he should eat salad for lunch and dinner, because it was starting to help the men. He also asked Mother if he could tell his mother, when they went home, that he does not need to eat any salads for a month. She laughed, and told him she would. She also could see the change in most of the men.

Krillgan had managed to stop the deterioration, caused by the poison. She continued to administer the antidote orally to the men. While Krillgan helped their bodies to heal from the poison's effects. Krillgan did not like that he had to eat a few days more worth of salads, but was happy to find berries added, along with the meat and nuts.

When Mother was confident that they would lose no more men, and that all the survivors were on the road to recovery. Krillgan himself said the he did not need to eat anymore salads. Mother woke Kreen up in the middle of the night, and asked her to take Krillgan back to the main village. They then went and woke Krillgan. Mother gave them each a container, to have for breakfast.

Kreen had Krillgan sit in front of him on her Rancor, and told him that he could sleep if he could. She would hold onto him. In a way she was proud that he could help, and proud that he was willing to sacrifice his personal likes, just so he could help heal the men. She was definitely having mixed emotions when it came to Krillgan.

It was even harder, now that the majority of her own family believed that he was the child of Kindell's prophecy. After they heard that her grandfather had brought him to Dathomir. But right now she was his guardian, and he earned his sleep.

When they stopped for breakfast. It was a pleasant surprise that they both had containers of berries. She told Krillgan how much she loves berries.

The Clan Mother had the barrier around the men taken down, so the women could come and visit with them. They lost two thirds of the village's men. They probably would have lost the rest of them, if Kreen had not brought Krillgan. She was taking this as a sign that Kreen will come around, and accept him as her Sister.

Mother took the women of the village aside to talk with them. The women asked her, when the men would return to normal? They were all talking like children. Mother told them that this is the new normal for the men now. The poison had damaged their minds, but they have the body of a man. When they are fully recovered, they will also have the physical desires of a man. They need to be taught what is right and what is wrong, including in the bedroom. They need firm but simple rules to live by. If they don't have these rules, and the opportunity to satisfy their desires within them. Than they will start forcing themselves on them. That can lead to them to start forcing themselves on others. Including children. Which will mean that the Sisters where they will be living, will feel compelled to kill them.

Just remember that the men want and need the rules. Inside they want to be happy. They know that to be happy, they must make the person in charge happy. Which is you! There is also the chance that the poisons they drank, may have also made them sterile. The Nightsister like to design their poisons to attack many areas of the body at once. Because they wanted the poisons to act over a period of time, they could not attack every area of the body at once, or the men would have died as quickly as the beastmasters did.

The Clan Mother let this all sink in. She sat with them, in case they had any questions.

"Would their minds have been the way they were before, if we had told you about the herbs right away?"

"Yes! And all the men would still be alive."

"Did the healer help?"

"Which healer? A couple of the Sisters with me are better healers than I am."

"What about the man who sounded like a boy did he help?"

The description both surprised and pleased the Clan Mother. It meant that they never saw Krillgan.

"Yes he helped. He came at a critical time."

"Can we meet him, to thank him?" The women were curious to see what he looks like.

"No, he left. He has other things that he needs to attend to."

Like playing Moog and Rancor, with her daughter and niece, all over the countryside. But she did not tell the women that.

"When you said the Sisters where we live could be forced to deal with or men, if we did not set the proper ground rules. Does that mean that we will not be living with the Singing Mountain Clan?"

"That is correct. Because of all the years the Nightsisters have been conditioning you to fear and obey them. You would be too close to them, and it would be too easy for them to manipulate you into hurt us. The further away from the Nightsisters you are, the better your chances are of living a peaceful happy life."

"Where will we live?"

"I don't know yet. It depends on who will buy you."

The women were shocked. They were starting to feel like they were no longer slaves. The Clan Mother was willing to talk to them and explain things to them. Now they find out that they were to be sold. Some started crying, the rest were angry.

"Is that all we are to you? Slaves that can be bought and sold."

"No. But for the safety of my clan, that is the only way I can afford to think of you right now."

The women just sat there in stunned silence. Their hopes crushed. Their future uncertain.

"The carts have returned. You should start packing them with your stuff. We will be leaving in the morning."

"Where will we be going?"

"We are going to the town. I will be selling you there."

"Will you be selling us to offworlders?"

"Only if you want me to."

"I thought we were slaves? Don't you just sell us to whoever will give you the most for us? How is it that you say we have a choice?"

"I am not a Nightsister. I do have a conscience. My conscience says to find you a place where you will fit the best. The value depends on what the buyer can afford. If you think that going offworld is the best option for you, than I will see that it is done."

The women realised, that this was a strange way to deal with slaves. The hope they lost earlier, had found its way back into their hearts. They told the Clan Mother that they wanted to stay on Dathomir.

When they passed through the gate, all the Militia, and most of the Sisters left them as they continued on to the town. None of the Sisters bossed them around, but rather pitched in where they were needed. After dinner, the Clan Mother would spend time with the boy beastmaster, and the Rancor. Helping them to get used to working together. It was hard for the people of the village to understand, why they were being treated as equals, not as slaves. They began to see that the Sisters were not guarding them, but protecting them. After they chased away a young bull Malkloc. The Clan Mother told them, that in a Malkloc's simple mind, all two legged creatures are Rancor. Humans are just a smaller version, making them easier to trample. A Nightsister never would have told them that. In fact she probably would have chased the Malkloc at them, instead of away from them, just to see how many it would trample in one pass. She was still patient with them when they had questions. Some women just made up questions, so they had an excuse to be near her. She made them feel like they were real people. They were sad when they first saw the town, because it meant that she would be leaving them. They camped on the south side of town. The Clan Mother had the man in charge of the trading post, come out and look at them.

Most of the town was on the palisade, watching what was going on. They had never seen the sale of humans before. The Clan Mother had the little beastmaster parade the Rancor around, to show that he had control over them. He had them plow up a small piece of land, to show that they knew how to work with a farming village.

There was a Sister from the Frenzied River Clan, on the wall, watching the whole thing. She knew that the Clan Mother was somehow helping the boy, but could not figure out how she was doing it. She jumped down off the wall, and asked the Clan Mother why she was selling these people. The Clan Mother told her about the Nightsisters attack of her caravan. How in retaliation she captured then burnt one of the Nightsisters' villages. Because she captured the villagers, she has the right to do with them as she pleases.

"It pleases you to sell them?"

"No. It pleases me to find them a new home."

"Then it pleases me to offer them a new home."

She introduced herself to the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan. When the Clan Mother heard her name, she knew that she had the authority to make deals on behalf of her Clan Mother. She told the Clan Mother that they had been planning on establishing a new farming village, and that these people were just what they needed to help them get established. They then started negotiating a fair trade.

The Sister had started by offering spider silk fabric. The Mother countered by saying she would rather have the spools of silk. They have a skilled weaver who knows how to weave silk. The Sister said that she had never heard of a silk weaver, from any of the three clans that harvest silk, moving to her clan. The Clan Mother told her that the weaver comes from an off world clan, and she has already met her husband.

"Are you talking about the builder's wife? He often boasted about what a skilled woman she is."

"That she is. Our clan has benefited from her presence, as much as it has benefited from his."

"That is high praise."

"Then we have a deal?"

They shook hands, like the builder taught them, when two people come to an agreement. Just like that, the people had a new home. The village women came up to the Clan Mother to thank her, but they did not know the right way to do it. She told them that it was okay for them to touch her. They all took turns hugging her. Some even took the liberty of kissing her on her cheek.

One of the ladies asked her indulgence, "Is it true that the Singing Mountain actually sings?"

"It is not just one mountain, but a group of mountains. Yes, it does sound like they are singing."

"Is it possible? Please can we come hear it?"

The Sister spoke up, "I'd like to hear it too."

"A year from now, after you have finished the planting, and if your Sisters let you, you can come to us, and we will take you to where the mountains sing. It is an even greater experience, if you can bring some musicians along."

When Amblin-Elu arrived back at the main village, she suddenly had a pain in her heart, Riktob would not be home to greet her. She told the Sisters that were with her to keep going on. She wanted to be alone for a minute. She did not want them to see her cry. Her Rancor made some comforting noises, he sensed her sorrow. After she had a good cry, she composed herself and entered the gate. She did find Andriel and Krillgan, waiting for her just outside her home. She smiled, because she could guess what this was about.

"I take it that Krillgan told you about our agreement."

"Yes, and I don't agreed that he doesn't need to eat vegetables, and salad, for a whole month."

"I don't agree either. Krillgan, not eating vegetables was not part of our agreement."

"But I don't like eating vegetables, raw or cooked!"

"But you do like eating berries. Don't you!"

Krillgan nodded his head.

"You know there are a lot of people in this village that also like to eat berries. How do you think they would feel if I made a law, the no one can eat berries, until Krillgan has finished eating his vegetables?"

"You could do that?"

"Of course. I'm the Clan Mother."

Krillgan knew that if she made that law, there would be a lot of people upset with him, especially Kreen. He does not want her to be upset with him. He really likes her, and Ludia, and Diennu love her. She was especially nice to him this last trip. Krillgan promised to eat his vegetables. The Clan Mother told him, that he wasn't allowed to pass them off to Ludia, and Diennu, because they like their vegetables. He nodded his head. The Clan Mother also reminded him that he was being trained to be a Sister of this clan.

"It is very important for people to trust you. If you start telling lies, even small ones. Than people will stop trusting you, and you will be a poor Sister. You can even be kicked out of the clan for lying."

Krillgan was looking at the ground, but he nodded his head like he understood.

"Another thing you have to remember. You ate those leaves, because you were hoping that it would help you help those men, and it did. Now you have creatures living inside of you. They entered your body because they found there all the nourishment they needed. The Selkath told your parents that they have never entered anyone else's body, because they could not find the right nourishment. Do you think the little creatures could live in you, if the nourishment they need comes from vegetables, and you stopped eating vegetables?"

Krillgan looked up at her. "Do you think so?"

"I don't know where there nourishment comes from. But the more different, the kinds of foods you eat, the more types of nourishment you will have in your body."

Krillgan had not thought about, what type of nourishment the little creatures needed. He knew that he had to think about feeding the creatures, if he wanted to be able to continue healing people. He apologised to the Clan Mother, and to his own mother, for being selfish. He said that he was going to try harder to be a good Sister to the clan.

Andriel was satisfied with the way this turned out. She had turned to leave, but then turned back. She told Amblin-Elu that Krillgan had told her that she was pregnant. Amblin-Elu was overjoyed to hear that news. It meant that her clan was no longer under judgement. She asked her, when Krillgan noticed? She said that he noticed as soon as he arrived back home.

Andriel leaned forward, and whispered to Amblin-Elu. "I think it's because of all the alone time Chitrah and I had while Krillgan was gone."

Amblin-Elu could not help herself. With Andriel so close to her, she put her arms around her, and gave her a hug.

"Congratulations!"

"I told Krillgan, that we should hold off telling anyone for a while. In case something happens. But he insisted that it was important that I tell you."

The Clan Mother assured her, that she would not mention it, until Andriel has made the announcement.

Amblin-Elu was feeling good about the news, and she was feeling good about the way things turned out for the people of the slave village. There was one more thing that she wanted to feel good about. She told every Sister she met, to spread the word, that there was a voluntary meeting of the Sisters tonight. Voluntary meant that they did not need an excuse, if they did not come to the meeting tonight. But Mother knew that all of the Sisters would come if they could make it. Just to find out what the meeting was about.

That night all the Sisters that were not on patrol or village guard duty were there. She opened the meeting by reminding everyone, why they were called the Singing Mountain Clan. She asked the Sisters to give a show of hands, if they heard the mountains sing. All the older Sisters held up a hand. Then she asked for a show of hands, by everyone who had not heard the mountains sing. All the younger Sisters held their hands up. She than asked the Sisters that had their hand up, to keep them up, if they wanted to hear the mountains sing. She was pleased to see that Krillgan, Ludia, and Diennu, were among the ones who kept their hands up. She was surprised to see that Kreen and the other Sisters her age had their hands up. She was Ludia's age when her mother took her. She told everyone who wanted to come, to be ready to leave in two days' time. She also encouraged every mother to be there, when their daughters hear it for the first time. It is a moment worth sharing.

Amblin-Elu asked Grasma Raek, if she would be acting Clan Mother while they were gone. This was a prestige appointment, even if it was only for a few days. It meant that the Clan Mother had the utmost confidence in you and your abilities. It was usually reserved for members of the Clan Mother's own family. The Djo family. Amblin-Elu thought that Grasma deserved it. For willingly sharing her daughter's prophecy, and for bringing most of her family back into bonding with the other Sisters, and accepting Krillgan.

When they gathered to depart, Kreen was disappointed to see that the Clan Mother had also invited Mother Andriel, and Father Chitrah along. She thought that as non-force users, they would just slow everyone down. At the very least they should have been made to ride a Rancor, like all the musicians. She was quite surprised to find that they were able to keep up. Sisters regularly increasing their strength, through sharing their force energy. Even her three charges were helping them. She was used to seeing them help each other, but they were force users, so could be boosted by another force user. They were not even touching them to share. When Kreen needs to strengthen her Rancor, she has to touch her to do it. Whenever she had shared strength with another Sister she had always touched them to do it. She was somewhat embarrassed that she was the instructor, yet she did not know how to do what her students were doing.

She started paying more attention to what the other Sisters were doing to help Mother Andriel and Father Chitrah along. When she felt confident she understood what they were doing, she too reached out to Mother Andriel to share strength with her. She was surprised at how receptive of a vessel she was. Later when she went to boost Father Chitrah, she found him to be as receptive. They were able to reach their destination, before nightfall, over very difficult terrain. She had been told that it normally takes non-force users a minimum of four days of hiking to reach this point.

As soon as they arrived, the musicians were taken up to a broad ledge, to start setting up. The Sisters were encouraged to hold hands with family members and friends. The Saurian fliers, a leather winged reptilian creature that were normally quite vicious. Circled overhead as if they were expecting something wonderful to happen. When the musicians started tuning their instruments, the echoes could be heard bouncing off the neighbouring mountains, occasionally the echo seamed louder than the original sound. Almost as if the mountains where trying to wake up.

When the musicians were ready, they notified the Sister that was with them, who signalled the Clan Mother. By this time of day, the valley that the Sisters were in, was dark. They could still see the colours of the setting sun, linger in the sky and the mountain tops. Mother signalled back, and the musicians struck a chord, and the mountains woke up and answered back. The Saurian fliers stopped circling, and started dancing in the sky. The musicians' music seemed to flow, as part of the dance, and the mountains started singing. It was like they reached out and grabbed certain notes and magnified them, tossing them back and forth, and back again. When you heard it for the first time, it would raise goosebumps on your skin. You were happy to be holding someone's hand, because this was a moment to be shared. You wanted to be lost in time, so that this moment would never end. The mountains like the Saurian fliers responded to the ebb and flow of the music. When the sky was finally mountain black, Amblin-Elu, and her sister Butashe, released their daughters' hands and walked to the very center of the valley. Ludia, and Diennu had quickly grabbed each-others hands, when their mothers let go. Amblin-Elu and Butashe, lifted their hands, and seemed to ignite the mountain tops. The tops of the mountains glowed blue from the Dathomirite deposits on them. Like they did with the music, the mountains now did with the force energy given them. They magnified it, making the music part of it, and let it flow down to the Sisters below. Before they could feel the song of the mountains in their body. Now as the force enveloped them, they could feel it in their souls. No one knew when the musicians stopped playing, because the singing continued, and was part of you. Tears of joy would fill most peoples' eyes. When the music finally stopped, everyone felt that they had been washed in the purest mountain stream, from the inside out. You felt as one with your neighbour, and at peace with everyone else. Everyone just laid down where they were, and slept, because that is what you needed to do.

Amblin-Elu, and Butashe, had returned to their daughters, and lay down next to them. In the morning when the rising sun gently woke them up. They all got up feeling refreshed. They devoured the food that they had brought for breakfast, as if they hadn't eaten in days. After breakfast the Clan Mother spoke to them. She told them that this is the heritage that they have received from those that have been here before them. This is the heritage they would be passing down to their children, and their children's children. They are its guardians, it was okay to share the singing with outsiders. But not the song. They will teach them how to block outsiders from touching the sacred deposits, on the top of the mountains. Deposits that others would want to steal and destroy. The musicians were allowed to go back to town. Mother Andriel, and Father Chitrah, sat together, hand in hand, waiting to go back with the Sisters. Grateful for the privilege of experiencing, such a spiritual thing. Grateful that they were considered clan enough, to be there. On the return journey, Kreen found it second nature to reach out to Mother Andriel and Father Chitrah. She also found herself drawn closer to them, because of their shared experience.

When they returned to the village, Amblin-Elu and Ludia, stayed with Butashe and Diennu, so that they could bond and grieve together, leaving Grasma in charge a while longer. The elders were very pleased that their Clan Mother was doing this. They were also invited to Butashe's home, to hear the description of the dream Diennu had, that so upset her, not wanting her father to leave on the caravan. She told of seeing her father wounded by the darkness. He fought bravely, she felt so proud of him, but the darkness prevailed. Before it consumed him, he called out to her. He told her that he was sorry, he wasn't coming back home. When she awoke she knew this had something to do with the caravan trip. Which is why she tried to stop him from going. One of the elders asked her why she finally let him go. She said that he fought so bravely in the dream, and she knew that others were counting on him. This was his destiny, she had to let him go. Her answer brought comfort to her mother, aunt, and cousin.

When a month had passed without any problems. With Krillgan reassuring his mother every morning that the baby was happy. Andriel finally told Chitrah that she was pregnant. Chitrah jokingly asked if he knew the father, which made Andriel very upset. Chitrah would still leave for months at a time, supervising the building projects in the other clans. The second aqueduct for the Great Canyon Clan had not yet been completed. Andriel told him how she found out she was pregnant. Chitrah remember the wonderful time they had together before then, and apologised to his wife. Her love and faithfulness were never in doubt with him. It wasn't until he tried comforting her, that he realised how deeply he had wounded her.

After the fields had been prepared for planting, it was time to take the ashes out of the temple, and spread them on the fields, so the dead can nourish the living. The whole clan gathered. This was a time for family and loved ones to share some of the memories they have of the ones they lost. Amblin-Elu gave a moving speech describing the battle and how bravely everyone fought. She held up the earring her husband had in his hand. She told the Militia that this was their trophy, a testament of their bravery.

"Do you think the Nightsister just took it off, and gave it to him? No! He had to take it from her. He had to get up close to her, and make her bleed. He knew, we would need evidence of who did this to them. They were not timid, they did not run and hide. They fought bravely right to the very end. Why? Because they were members of the Singing Mountain Clan's Militia."

All the Militia members cheered. They were so proud of their fallen heroes, and they knew that their Sisters were proud of them. The herd was proud of the Rancor that were in the caravan, how they fought the Nightsisters' Rancor. Preventing them from attacking their Militia members. The Clan Mother shared with everyone the wounds the people of the Nightsister's village saw in their Rancor. How they saw the bone on one Rancor's arms. The flesh was so shredded, that they did not know how it could even use its arms. All the children that lost a parent were encouraged to share something. Ludia and Diennu told everyone how courageous their fathers were, and how proud they were of them. They missed them terribly, and were glad for their mothers' and friends that were there for them.

The Sisters were moved the most by the youngest children. They could not speak loud enough for the people to hear them. So a Sister had to pick them up and hold them, so that they could tell the Sister what to say, so the Sister could speak for them. The Sister got to hug them, and comfort them when they started to cry. Everyone felt their pain.

After the children spoke, the ashes were sprinkled on the freshly plowed fields. Because of the amount of ashes, they had to use most of the fields from the main village, and the first farming village, since it was the closest. The ashes were raked into the top layer of soil, so their dryness would not prevent the seeds from sprouting. Every day the people would go out to check the fields. They were hopeful when they found dew on the ground in the morning. One night a gentle rain fell. When they went out in the morning, they could see that all the fields had a green tint to them. The Clan Mother declared the day to be a holy day. It was a special day. The ancestors had received their dead, and would continue to nourish them. Special treats were prepared for dinner that day, and kegs of ale were opened. No restrictions were placed on how much anyone would consume.

The Clan Mother had assigned a healer and elder to monitor Mother Andriel's pregnancy. When the healer questioned the elders involvement. The elder asked her if she had ever treated a woman with black blood before. If something went wrong it could take all of their abilities to help her. She reminded her that she also had been trained as a healer, when she was a young Sister.

When the time came, the elder sent Krillgan to get the Clan Mother, though he was a healer. She thought he was still too young to witness his mother give birth. Mother Andriel herself said that it would be better for Krillgan not to see her like that. It could shatter his image of her. Andriel was still in labour, when the Clan Mother arrived. She told Krillgan to keep his father company, while she goes into the bedroom to see how things were going. When she saw where they were in the delivery, she went and sat on the bed behind Andriel to support her body, and so that she could squeeze her hands when she had to push.

Andriel thought that the healer and elder were too quiet when the baby's head started to appear. She wondered if something was wrong with the baby. She followed their instructions, and kept asking if the baby was alright. There was enough hesitation in their answers, to make her think they are just trying to keep her calm. Her heart that was already racing, started beating even faster. In her mind she wondered if maybe Krillgan was a fluke. Maybe she and Chitrah were incompatible, and they had created a monster. She asked them if it looked like her. But they did not respond. She asked if it looked like Chitrah. They just told her to push. This delivery was actually shorter than Krillgan's delivery, but because of Andriel's heightened anxiety, it seemed longer.

When the baby was finally out, and crying, Andriel started relaxing. It had a healthy sounding cry. The healer told her that she had a son. When she held the baby up so that Andriel could see it and take it to start nursing it. Andriel started crying, they 'had' created a monster. She asked them what they have done to her son. The healer was confused with her outburst. It looked like a normal, pink, healthy boy, to her. Andriel asked, why did it not have red fur and blue skin like her Krillgan? The healer learnt two things at that moment. One that Krillgan was really red and blue, he only looked purple. The second was something she wasn't supposed to know. That Krillgan really was her son, and Chitrah really was Krillgan's father.

The Clan Mother asked Andriel to take her crying son, and start nursing him. She was the one who did this. Andriel took her son, and was able to get him to start feeding, even though her fur seemed to bother him. They waited until the after birth was delivered, and Andriel had finished nursing the baby, and was properly covered up, before the elder went out to Chitrah, and told him that he has a healthy son. Chitrah asked if Andriel was okay. The elder told him that she was recovering. Chitrah did not like the sound of that. He went into the bedroom.

When Chitrah first saw the baby, he stopped dead in his tracks. "So you have been cheating on me." Andriel started crying, because she had no way to defend herself.

The Clan Mother became angry, and yelled at him, which woke the sleeping baby. Causing it to start crying. "Chitrah! You are the father of this baby. I'm the one who caused this, when I gave you both that potion. Now apologise to your faithful wife."

Chitrah hesitated, he loved his wife, and believed that she still loved him. He walked to the side of the bed, where she was. He lifted her head so that he could see full into her tear filled eyes. He asked her quietly if she had been faithful to him. Without hesitation, she said yes, as more tears filled her eyes. In a strong voice he said, "I believe you!" Then he bent over and kissed her on the lips. He sat on the edge of the bed, and put his arm around her, and asked her to forgive him. She told him that she did, and understood his reaction. She told him that when they first showed her their son. She thought they had created a monster, and took their baby away, and gave her another. But he smells like her baby. Chitrah asked the Clan Mother if all the children they have from now on will look like this one. The Clan Mother said that she believed that they would.

Chitrah asked Andriel if she remembered the vision the Iktotchi first officer shared with them, about their future. Andriel remembered part of it. Chitrah asked her if she remembered her telling her, about her being surrounded by many children, but she could not tell which ones were hers, because none of her other children would look like their first. Andriel smiled, she said that now she remembered. Chitrah told her that he remembered what she said, after the Clan Mother yelled at him, and he saw in her eyes that has been faithful to him.

Krillgan had followed his father into the bedroom. He knew his father had said something bad about his mother. But the Clan Mother defended her, and said she was at fault not his mother. He was happy to see that they were feeling better about each other. He went over to have a look at his brother, who his mother was able to coax back to sleep. He looked like a nice brother. He asked his parents, "What is his name?" Andriel looked at Chitrah. Chitrah said that he always liked the name of his mother's father. His name was Erin. Andriel said that she liked that name. So she told Krillgan, that his name is Erin. The Clan Mother had sent the healer to go bring the other elders, when Chitrah mentioned vision. She was hoping that he would share the whole vision, and tell them about the Iktotchi.

After the elders left, the healer was asked to live with the family for a few days, to help Andriel bond with her new baby. The healer asked to speak with Mother. She told Mother that she needs to be excused from the Bonding Ceremonies. She now knows the secret of Krillgan's true parentage, and believes that she would feel compelled to share that secret, because she has never kept a secret from the other Sisters before. Mother looked right at her, which made the Sister very uncomfortable. She told the healer that she has kept many secrets from her fellow Sisters. As healer she has learnt secrets about every family she has ministered to, and as a healer she is required to keep them. The Sister objected, she claimed that those secrets do not affect the clan or the Sisterhood. The Clan Mother told her that every secret affects the clan and Sisterhood, no matter how small they appear. It is up to the Clan Mother and the elders to determine whether secrets should be kept or shared. As a healer, she is responsible to keep secrets until the Clan Mother or an elder says she should share it. The healer looked downcast, she said that this secret is too heavy to carry. She won't be able to bond with her Sisters. The Clan Mother told her that she should let her fellow Sisters decide.

Now the healer was curious as to how her fellow Sisters would decide, without knowing the secret. So she agreed to let Mother do it, her way. At the next Bonding Ceremony, Amblin-Elu, stood before her Sisters, with the healer by her side. She told the Sisters, that this healer is required to keep secrets she has learnt through the course of her ministering to the people of the clan. She has learnt a secret that has become a burden to her, and feels that it will prevent her from bonding with them. One of the Sisters asked, if the elders know this secret? Amblin-Elu told the Sisters that the elders know all the clan's secrets. That is part of the burden they carry for the clan. The Sisters started talking amongst themselves, they always thought that they lived in a boring clan, now they know that the clan has secrets that they are not told about. They also knew that this healer helped in the delivery of Mother Andriel's baby. They assumed that the secret had something to do with the delivery. This meant that the secret could be considered gossip. As Sisters they knew things about the clan that the average clan member did not know. They were forbidden to gossip, because they knew that gossip can hurt the clan. They had studied enough examples in their own clan's history. One of the Sisters spoke up and said that it was better that she keep the secret, they could still bond with her. Amblin-Elu asked the Sisters if they all agree with what their Sister just shared. They all said they agreed. Amblin-Elu looked at the healer. "Do you feel better?" The healer indicated she did.

"Good! By the way it is all right to tell the Sisters about the Iktotchi, and their ability to see into the future."

The healer was all embarrassed, the Clan Mother had just set her up. Everyone heard her mention the Iktotchi. How was she going to share what she knew about them, without revealing Krillgan's secret. Then she laughed, Mother just taught her that it is okay to share part of a secret, without revealing the secret itself. This made the secret easier to carry.

Erin was ten months old when the former slaves, and some Sisters from the Frenzied River Clan came to visit. Mother had everyone doing something in preparation of their visit. She had watched a number of Sisters practising their modified version of martial arts, with different weapons. Mother liked that it was a form of fighting that resembled a dance. She selected one Sister each, to demonstrate her fighting technique with a specific weapon. She also selected one Sister to fight for the honour of the Sisters, and three women and one man to fight for the honour of the Militia. She told them that she did not want them fighting each other before their guests arrived. But they could fight anyone else. They pitched some tents just outside the main village, for their guests to stay in while they were there. They used tents, rather than housing them in the village, because they would be using them, for their trip to hear the mountains sing.

Kreen was disappointed when Mother asked her to take the children to the practise area, while the guests would be visiting. She expressed her disappoint, and told her that the children would be disappointed as well. She explained to Kreen, why she wanted them out of sight. The people from the village knew Krillgan's voice. They had assumed that he was a man with a child's voice. She did not want to shatter their image of him. In case the Nightsisters still communicated with one or more of them. She reminded her of how fond the Nightsisters were of holding hostages, to force others to do whatever they asked of them. Kreen looked at her Mother, and asked if that meant they could watch the festivities, if they kept out of sight of her guests. Mother smiled, she said, out of their sight, and out of her sight. Kreen said that she would accept her challenge.

The children were disappointed when they heard that they were not allowed to be there during the festivities. It seemed lately that they were getting more restrictions placed in their lives. Just the other day. Mother Andriel told them that they were not allowed to jump off the ledge around her rooftop patio, to the ground below. She was worried that Erin might see them do it, and try it himself. They had to use the stairs to go down. At least she did not say that they could not jump from the ground up to the ledge.

When they arrived at the practise area. Kreen asked them if they wanted to go see the festivities, when their guests arrived. They told her that they thought that they were not allowed to be there. Kreen told them that they were not allowed to be seen to be there. Mother had issued them a challenge. If she did not see them, and the guests did not see them, than they could be there. The thing about a challenge, is that they would later have to prove that they actually were there. They also had to think about what they could provide for themselves as far as food and drink was concerned. They knew that they could sleep in the woods. They could all take turns, keeping Protector company. Since he always watched over them when they slept or just took a nap outside of the village. The guest villagers would never go into the woods. Kreen told them that was true, but there would also be Sisters from the Frenzied River Clan there. They would have no problem going for a walk in the woods.

The children liked that this was going to be a hard challenge. They asked Kreen, if they were allowed to go to one of the farming villages, for their meals? Kreen did not think that would be a problem. She doubted that any of the guests would go to a farming village. But still they had to be watchful, in case one of them did have a relative that lived there, that they wanted to visit.

The children outlined a strategy for Kreen. Which she approved. The hard part was getting something that proved time and place. They could only identify possible items, when they were actually watching an event. Kreen did mention, that Krillgan could not go retrieve items, because he stood out too much. No one would pay any attention to a little girl picking up something that somebody dropped.

When the time approached, they climbed up the escarpment from the midlands to the highlands. Diennu knew she could have ridden on Protector's back, and been to the top of the escarpment twice as fast as anyone else, just by sharing force strength with her Rancor. But that seemed like cheating. Even Kreen got off of her Rancor to follow them up. It's not like it was a hard climb. It was only 800 meters straight up. Some of the mountains near the main village were much more difficult to climb.

They stayed in the woods closest to the main village, on its east side. They waited and watched to see when the guests would come. Then they would try to sneak closer to the village. The Rancor were told to stay in the woods, or they might give them away. The big problem, was that planting happened only a short while back. So the grain in the fields were only a few centimeters high. They could not use the fields as cover. They had to follow the natural low spots in the terrain to keep under cover. No walking in a straight line.

As the day wore on, Kreen sent the Rancor to go hunt for their dinner. If they return and they are not there, they should wait for them. Diennu wondered why their Rancor did not just go into the village and eat. They are not part of the challenge. Kreen said that this is true, but the Clan Mother knows them. If she sees them, than she will know that they are nearby. Which means she will be looking for them. Kreen spoke with the force as well, so that the Rancor heard her and understood the situation. When dinner time came, and their tummies started to growl, Kreen said she was sure that the Sister she spoke to, said they would be arriving today. When the sun started to set, they saw the first signs that the guests were on their way. She told the children to stay in the shadows, and they should be fine. When they moved close enough. They saw the Sisters from the Frenzied River Clan give their Mother silk cloth and spools of silk, as a sign of friendship and respect, from one clan to another. While this small ceremony was taking place the men and women of the main village were setting up tables. After the tables were in place, they started bringing out trays of food. They were going to share an evening feast with their guests. After their guests put away all their belongings in the tents, Mother signalled the local musicians, who had also set themselves up, to start playing. The feast had begun.

Kreen asked Ludia and Diennu, to go and get enough food for all of them to eat. She told them to use the force to make themselves look so small, they become invisible. She reminded Diennu that her mother is very good at doing that. That is way she is in charge of, and trains Rangers. The girls reached into the force, and tried to make themselves look small. At the tables, they found a tray that had been well picked over. They used that tray to place enough food on it, from the other trays, so that they all would have enough to eat. They grabbed the utensils they needed, and headed back. They brought the tray of food back and placed it in front of Kreen and Krillgan. They made sure that the vegetables were in front of Krillgan, and reminded him to eat his vegetables. He told them he was willing to share what was in front of him, if everyone else was willing to share. They all laughed and dug in. While they were eating, the men and women of the main village started to clear away the trays. Then they brought out new trays with nice tasty treats. Since the four of them had finished off all the food on the tray, the young girls asked if they should go and get some treats. Kreen and Krillgan were all for it. They asked them what they should get. Since berry season was underway, both Kreen and Krillgan wanted berries, which made the two young girls laugh. Krillgan reminded them, that they probably made special treats just for today. If they grabbed some of those, it would prove that they were there this day. Kreen thought that was a very smart idea, and sent the girls back for some treats. While they were checking the tables, Diennu told Ludia that she could see her. Ludia reply "So". Diennu told her to make herself small. Ludia felt embarrassed, she had forgot to make herself look small.

Amblin-Elu thought she saw Ludia, but when she looked back, she wasn't there. She could not really say she spotted her, but she was sure she was there somewhere. That means that they are here for the challenge. She would have to start watching more carefully.

The girls brought back small bowls of berries for everyone, and some treats with berries in them, along with some other treats. After Krillgan finished his bowl of berries, he reached for one of the other treats just to taste it. Ludia slapped his hand away, telling him not to eat their evidence. He could only eat the treats with berries in them. When they returned to the woods, the Rancor where waiting for them. Kreen took them to a place where she had spotted long grass earlier. She figured that this would be a nice place to sleep. When everyone was comfortable. Kreen said that she would take the first watch with Protector. Protector told her it wasn't necessary, he was resting while they were waiting. Kreen's Rancor said it was true, she could hear him snoring. So Protector watched over them by himself. Krillgan reached out with his hand and touched Protector. He often did this when they slept together at night. This allowed Protector to access Krillgan's ability to detect life, while he used his sense of smell. Because of this, Protector always felt that someone was watching with him.

The next day the Clan Mother took her guests on a tour of the main village, when they saw no barriers to separate where the people lived from where the Rancor were. They asked the Clan Mother about it. She told them that the stream was enough of a barrier. They saw that the Rancor had a nice large section of the village to live in. They liked how their temple was built on a piece of land above the level of the village, it added a sense of reverence and tranquility to the temple. They asked, why the temple was surrounded by flowing water. The Clan Mother told them that the temple symbolised their belief in, and their use of, the force. Therefore you need to use the force just to enter the temple. They asked her, why someone could not just walk across the stream? She told them that the stream is much deeper than it looks, and is very cold. Most people would collapse into the water before they made it across. The ones that did make it across, would find the temple too cold, and die from hypothermia. They understood that this temple demanded respect. They saw how the Builder incorporated the natural designs of the village, to build his water wheel, to give power to the various trades in the village. They could see the similarities between what he built here, and what he built in their main village. They ate their lunch, with the trades' people in the dining area.

They asked the people, where they could find the healer. The man who speaks with a boy's voice. Every trades' person they asked, told them that they had no healer like that.

The Sisters from the Frenzied River Clan, heard that the Sisters from the Singing Mountain Clan, were going to give demonstrations of their fighting prowess that evening. They had asked the Clan Mother if they could give a short demonstration of their own, before her Sisters gave theirs. The Clan Mother assured them that as guests, they had the right to do so. So they spent the afternoon practising their fighting moves, wondering what they would do for a demonstration. Most of the former slaves watched them, while the rest went around to the villagers working in the fields. To see if they knew where the healer was.

At dinner time the dining area was pretty crowded, with everyone from the main village as well as the guests. Families with young children were allowed to be served first. When the people from the Frenzied River Clan saw the Builder and his wife, and their young son go up for their meals. They were surprised to see how red his wife was. They thought that she would be as blue as he was. When they saw the son, they asked the locals if the child was adopted. They told the people, that they heard that the Clan Mother had given them a potion shortly after they arrived, which has affected how their children look. Now their children will look like everyone else's.

After dinner they asked the Clan Mother where they might find the healer. She told them that he would be away for quite a while. Not to worry, she will tell him they asked about him. They started to wonder if he was a hermit. That liked to live on his own. That only helped with difficult healings. Since the people of the village did not know about him.

The Sister that authorised their purchase, had listened to the former slaves' speculations. She believed that the Council of Mothers would have known about a powerful male healer, living as a hermit. She suspected the Clan Mother was hiding something. If there was a male healer, living on their own, in this part of Dathomir. She was sure the Nightsisters would have kidnapped him long ago. Even if he was a eunuch like they thought, and could not be seduced. The Nightsisters had other means to make someone like that, do what they want. She decided to talk to the former slaves, when she had a chance, and ask them to stop inquiring about the healer. Their inquiries might endanger the healer's life.

That evening, to start off the demonstrations. The Clan Mother announced that the Sisters from the Frenzied River Clan would go first. What they had decided to do, was just their regular practise routine. But they would have two Sisters doing it at once, so it looked like it was synchronized. When they had finished, everyone clapped politely. The Sisters were disappointed, they were hoping for a healthier response.

When the Singing Mountain Clan took over, two gourds were placed at one end of the open area. When the first Sister came out for her demonstration. The people from the Frenzied River Clan wondered what she was demonstrating, because she did not appear to have any weapons. She bowed to the Clan Mother, then she bowed to the Builder. She started the demonstration by starting to build a force fire ball, then she let it fade, and pretended to throw it. She moved quickly forward, and looked like she had grabbed people, and thrown them around. It was only when she grabbed some daggers out of nowhere, and activated the blades, that the Sisters from the Frenzied River Clan, realised that she was simulating how to attack a pirate ship with only two Dathomirite daggers. They told their own people, so they would know what the demonstration was about. They were quite impressed by how real she made it look. She ended her demonstration by throwing the two daggers at the gourds. The guest all clapped strongly to show their appreciation of the demonstration, even though the Sisters did not think she threw her daggers very well, because they did not hit the gourds dead in the center. It was only when the gourds were passed to them that they saw there were targets carved on them, and she hit them both, smack in their center. They were told that the Sister did not know where the targets would be until she was close enough to see it. The Sisters from the Frenzied River Clan, where now very impressed.

The next Sister demonstrated some techniques using the fighting stick. Again she started by first bowing to the Clan Mother, than bowing to the Builder. This had the Sisters from the Frenzied River Clan's attention. She was doing moves that they had never seen before. She would be a formidable opponent. They thought the demonstration ended too soon. The next Sister started her demonstration the same way as the two Sisters before her.

One of the Sisters from the Frenzied River Clan asked one of the Sisters from the Singing Mountain Clan, why they were all bowing to the Builder. She told her that the Builder was their chief instructor for fighting techniques. The Sister from the Frenzied River Clan, asked if the Builder was a Sister? She said that he was a non-force user. "But both he and his wife are formidable warriors, in being able to fight without using weapons. He has shared some of his knowledge with our Militia and our Sisters, showing us how to apply his fighting technique to using weapons. Drastically altering our fighting techniques, and the way we train. What you are seeing is how we have applied what he has taught us. Making us all better fighters." The Sister passed this information on to her fellow Sisters. No wonder there fighting style is so much different from their own. These are not Sisters that they can challenge, and expect to win. They were awed by how her demonstration seemed like she was dancing with a sword in her hand.

The last Sister also started her demonstration, by bowing to the Clan Mother, then bowing to the Builder. She was demonstrating the fighting stick with the sword attached. Andriel had convinced her to tie a ribbon around the attachment. Both as a safety measure, so it does not become detached, and also to enhance the visual and audio appreciation of her movements. The sight and sound of the ribbon fluttering, through the flurry of movements, had many people mesmerized. During the demonstration, a piece of the ribbon broke off. Krillgan told everyone, to take note of where that piece landed. It would be their evidence that they were here today. They told him that ribbons were common. "How could it prove that they were here today?" He answered their question with his own. "How did we know to look for a ribbon?" Now they understood how it was their evidence.

The Clan Mother announced that the last event was not a demonstration. She had picked a Sister to represent the honour of their Sisterhood, and four members of the Militia, to represent the honour of the Militia. The Sister and the four members came out. They bowed to their Mother, then bowed to the Builder. Mother told them to begin. The four members of the Militia first tried to completely surround their Sister, but she would not cooperate. She stepped back and engaged the ones trying to manoeuvre to her blind spot first. Because they fought so well, the Sisters from the Frenzied River Clan thought it was a staged fight. The one Sister asked a Sister from the Singing Mountain Clan, how long they had practised to perfect this fight. The Singing Mountain Clan Sister looked at the Sister from the Frenzied River Clan. "Didn't you hear our Mother? This is not a staged fight. This is the first time they have been able to meet. They are fighting for honour." The Sister from the Frenzied River Clan, quickly relayed this information to her fellow Sisters. They could not believe that the Militia members could fight so well. Their Militia could only use bows and arrows. They asked the Sister from the Singing Mountain Clan why their Mother permitted this. She smiled and told them it helps them to be better fighters. "Do you know how embarrassing it would be, for just one of our Sisters, to be dis-armed by the Militia members?" They asked her why the Sister never used force push against the Militia members. She told them that to use force push against just one of them, would cause you to drop your guard, and the others would hit you with nasty blows to the body. To use force push, you have to push them all back at once. All that does is give the members of the Militia a chance to rest, and catch their breath before they reengage you. You are better off using the force to enhance your strength and speed. The Sisters were mesmerized by what they saw, when they knew the truth.

Everyone fought bravely. Neither side conceding an advantage to the other. Finally, the Clan Mother signalled for a horn to be blown. Both sides knew that this was the signal to disengage. Everyone watching, jumped to their feet to applaud the fighters. Everyone except the four who were not supposed to be seen. The Clan Mother congratulated all the fighters, telling them that their honour was still intact. Which caused everyone to applaud wildly again.

One of the Sisters from the Frenzied River Clan, had noticed that everyone who participated in todays' events, wore special gloves. The Sister from the Singing Mountain Clan pulled out her pair. She showed them her gloves. She told them that it was designed by Father Chitrah, the one they call the Builder. It has strips of metal sewn between two pieces of leather on the top part. It is intended to keep the bones in the fingers and hands from being crushed, when they take a direct hit to any part of the hand. This makes it faster for the healer to heal them.

She was asked, "Which healer."

The Sister knew she messed up. "The healer of your choice. We all have favourites."

She got away with that one. Everyone's healer of choice, when it came to crushed or broken fingers was Krillgan.

She told the guests that every Sister, and every member of the Militia has a pair. The Sisters from the Frenzied River Clan asked if they could also get a pair. The host Sister told them to go to their cobbler's shop tomorrow, and ask if they can make them a pair of practise gloves. They probably would not be ready, until they return from visiting the Singing Mountains.

After everyone had left for the evening. The four felt it was safe to go to where the demonstrations took place. To see if they could find that ribbon. The ground was pretty trampled from that last fight. Making it harder to find. But Krillgan managed to see a little piece sticking up out of the dirt, because of his Chagrian vision, and pulled it out from where it had been trampled under. Holding it up, for the others to see.

The next morning, the Sister in charge of the group from the Frenzied River Clan, told them that there would be a meeting in front of their tents after breakfast. When the people were told that their search for the healer, might actually be endangering the healer's life. They reluctantly stopped looking for him. None of them wanted the Nightsisters to get a hold of him.

While they were meeting, one of their Sisters went to meet with the Clan Mother. The Sisters of the Frenzied River Clan were embarrassed by how poor their fighting demonstration was, compared to the demonstrations put on by the Sisters of the Singing Mountain Clan. They wanted a way to redeem themselves. They proposed a friendly competition. A foot race, and an archery competition, with the elders serving as impartial judges. Since there were only six of them that came on this trip. They would form two teams of three. The Clan Mother accepted their challenge on behalf of the Singing Mountain Clan. The Sister also asked the Clan Mother if the Sister in charge of their group could test herself against the four Militia members that fought yesterday. She would like to see how well she would do against them. But doesn't want it to be a public spectacle. The Clan Mother said she understood, and would see what she could arrange.

There was one more thing she wanted to ask. She told the Clan Mother, that she heard that the one their clan calls Father Chitrah. The one that all the other clans call the Builder. Is a skilled warrior and has taught them some interesting techniques. Is it possible for him to teach them some stuff, before they leave to go back to their clan? The Clan Mother said that they would need to speak with Father Chitrah about that, and sent one of her Sisters to get him. The Clan Mother told her that if it was up to her, she would not let him, because it would give the Frenzied River Clan's Sisters an unfair advantage over the other clans, when it comes to a territorial challenge. The Sister from the Frenzied River Clan, could not believe that the Clan Mother just said that she has no authority over the Builder. She understood that the Builder was a member of her clan. She must have authority over him. She will need to discuss this with the Sister in charge when she goes back to the tents. No doubt they will need to discuss this with their Clan Mother and their elders when they get back. The Singing Mountain Clan does not seem to be behaving like a normal clan.

When the Builder arrived, he told the Sister that he has no time right now, to take on any more students to train them in martial arts. Right now his focus is in helping his wife get back into her pre-pregnancy shape, by helping her with her self-defence workouts. The Clan Mother explained to the Sister that the self-defence techniques that he works on with his wife, is both similar and different than what he teaches them. He will only teach the self-defence techniques to non-force using females. So that they can defend themselves from others who would try to force themselves on them. The Sister mentioned that some of the women here could use that type of help. The ones whose husbands had their brains damaged by the poisons. Sometimes they have trouble controlling them, because they are physically stronger, when the husbands do not get their way. Because they do not have the ability to understand why they should not do some things, they still try to get their way, by physically forcing the situation. Sometimes the Sisters have to get involved, because they don't understand that they are hurting the people who love them. The Clan Mother was worried that this could happen. She asked the Sister to send her people to come and talk with her and the Builder, after they are finished with their meeting at the tents. Maybe there was something they could do to help. The Sister thanked them both, and went to talk with her people.

When she left, Amblin-Elu told Chitrah, about telling the Sister that she did not want him training them, because they would have an unfair advantage over the other clans when it came to a territorial challenge. Chitrah asked her what weapons were used in the normal challenge. The Clan Mother said that they only use fighting sticks, because the intent is not kill the other Sister, but to show that they are ready and willing to defend their territory. Chitrah mentioned that the techniques using the sword, and the sword/fighting stick combination could be passed along, providing that they are willing to share this with Sisters from the other clans, and not just their own Sisters. Amblin-Elu saw what Chitrah was getting at. All their fighting techniques, involving the sword. Is geared towards fighting pirates. It would be wrong not to share those techniques.

While they were waiting for their guest to return, the Clan Mother sent a Sister to go bring the Sisters she had chosen to represent the Singing Mountain Clan, in today's competition. She also asked that one of the elders be brought to her, so she could explain their role in today's competition. She can then go and inform the other elders. When her guest returned to talk with her and Chitrah. She left them alone to talk with the Builder, while she took the Sisters aside to talk to them about the sword techniques. She told them that she was willing to send the two Sisters that demonstrated how to use the sword, and the sword/fighting stick combination. On their trip to the Singing Mountains. Provided that they are willing to share this with Sisters from other clans not just their own. The Sisters readily agreed. When the Clan Mother noticed that Chitrah had left the ladies. She went and asked them if anything had been decided. They told her that the Builder has gone to speak with his wife. He wants to accompany them to the Singing Mountains, so he can train them on the way to and from the Singing Mountains. The Clan Mother said there was one more thing she wanted to ask them. She was hoping that at some point in the future, when they feel comfortable. She would like them to tell her Sisters, what life was like, living as a slave to the Nightsisters. It will help them to better understand, why they need to stand up to them, and protect the people they can. The women told the Clan Mother that she is asking for something very difficult for them to do. The Clan Mother said she understood, which is why she asked them to do it when they are ready. It is not something she would ever force them to do. Which is why she is not giving them a time limit on when she would like them to talk to her Sisters. They felt better about that, because as her guests, they thought that they might be obligated to do so. But the Clan Mother had just assured them that if they leave and not say anything, she will not be disappointed with them.

Kreen had heard from a Sister about the competition that would be taking place that afternoon, and about the friendly fight that would be taking place that evening. The children of course wanted to see everything. Kreen told them that she was going to sneak into the village, to see if she could find Mother Andriel. They would need hooded cloaks for this evening. Not just the cloaks they have now, that they use for sleeping.

Kreen went to the west side of the village. Jumped up and grabbed the top of the palisade. She could have jumped clear over the palisade, but the latrines were on the other side, and that was something that she did not want to land in. From the top of the wall, she was able to jump over the latrines, and land on solid ground. She went to Mother Andriel's home. Knocked on the door, then walked right in closing the door behind her. She found Mother Andriel sitting on the floor, playing with her son, Erin. As soon as she saw that it was Kreen, she stood up right away and asked if anything was wrong? Kreen told her everything was going well. She told her about Mother's challenge, and how so far, they have managed to keep out of sight. She did not tell her about the items they collected as proof of them being there. She mentioned that if they were going to witness this evening's event, they would need hooded cloaks. Because they will be around clan Sisters, she is sure they will be spotted. If they are wearing hooded cloaks, it is only the cloaks that will be seen, and not them. So they would still be honouring the challenge. Mother Andriel told her that she was sure there were hooded cloaks in the seamstress's shop. If she would watch over Erin she would be right back. Kreen was happy to play with Erin until she came back. Erin was used to his mother suddenly running off when someone came to see her. So he was content to play with someone else until she came back.

When Mother Andriel came back, she told Kreen that the cloaks were all the same size. So they would be on the large size for the children. She also asked her to tell Krillgan that they would be going with the people from the Frenzied River Clan to the Singing Mountains. Tell him that they love him, and think about him often.

Kreen was always very impressed with how well Mother Andriel and Father Chitrah treated Krillgan, even when they had their own son to care for. She was sure that this was why he had an easy going nature, and everyone in the clan felt comfortable with him around. She wondered if her own mother would have been more open, if her grandfather had been around. She knew that grandmother would have been happier. Then she thought about Kindell's prophecy, and how the important person would be forced to leave Dathomir. What if she had her own family, could she really leave them, to wander the stars like her grandfather. Maybe it wasn't a good thing, to be the person of the prophecy.

When Kreen returned with the hooded cloaks. She suggested that they grab a quick lunch at the first farming village. No one will be there to serve them, because they were used to eating their lunch in the fields. After they grabbed what looked like the remnants of breakfast. Kreen told the Rancor to take the hooded cloaks, and wait for them at the fourth farming village. They would meet them there for dinner, after the competition. They nibbled on their lunch, while they made their way around to where the competitions were supposed to take place. They needed to find a hiding place that still gave them a view of what was happening. They opted for a small group of trees. That way they would be in the shade the whole time. There were enough bushes growing around them, that it should discourage others from entering. The competition began with a foot race from where the archery event was setup, to the gate, and back again. Three Sisters representing each clan took off running when one of the elders gave the signal. The children tried to run alongside of them, put where easily left behind. When the runners were out of sight, the elders decided to start the archery competition. There was two parts to the competition. The first part was a straight forward shot at a gourd placed on a stand three hundred meters away. Because you could barely see the gourd no target was marked on it. The goal of this competition, was to see how close your three arrows would be to each other. The second part was to shot an arrow through some hoops, than have it hit a gourd with a target marked on it, only one hundred meters away. There were to be three different paths marked by the hoops. Every participant was allowed only one attempt on each course. A guest Sister was chosen to go first, followed by a local Sister. Until they all had there try.

For the distance shooting, when the gourds were brought for the elders to exam. They found two groupings virtually identical. They declared the two Sisters to be equal winners, and asked them to identify their arrows. It turned out to be one Sister from each clan. A Sister from the Frenzied River Clan won the first course. A Sister from the Singing Mountain Clan won the second course. Two Sisters again tied on the third course. The Sister from the Frenzied River Clan that had tied in the distance competition, was also the Sister that tied on the third course. Because she was considered a winner at two different events, she was declared the overall archery champion. As declared champion, the Clan Mother braided some wildflowers into her hair, so that everyone knew who she is. The elders declared that since no clan had won more events than the other clan. The archery competition was declared a tie for the clans.

Krillgan had mentioned that getting their hands on just one of the gourds used in the archery competition, would be enough to prove that they were here today. Kreen said that after everyone has left, she will pick out a gourd with the least damage. She doubted that anyone would be doing anything with them. Now everyone was waiting around to see who won the footrace competition. The elders drove two long stakes into the ground. One on either side of the trail, with colourful ribbons on each stake. This was going to be the finish line. Now each runner had a different coloured arm band, so the elders would be able to identify them. When the runners were first seen in the distance, it was clear that this was going to be a tight race. There was one elder standing beside each stake, and a Sister behind her to record the colours the elder called, in the order that they were called. When the lists called by each elder was compared. They were found to match. The Sisters from the Frenzied River Clan, placed 1st, 4th, and 6th. The Sisters from the Singing Mountain Clan, placed 2nd, 3rd, and 5th. The Sister who placed 1st had flowers braided into her hair by the Clan Mother. The elders declared the running competition a tie for both clans. Then everyone went for dinner.

After everyone left, the four of them crawled out of their hiding place. Kreen ran over to where the gourds had been abandoned, and selected one. As the four of them approached the forth farming village, Kreen found herself dancing around the Brackaset. Apparently, they were all interested in getting a sample of the gourd. The people of the village told her that it was a good thing that she did not let them try it. Because if a female Brackaset tried it, it would sour her milk. She left the gourd with the Rancor, because she knew the Brackaset would not approach them.

After dinner, they put on their hooded cloaks. It fit Kreen quite well, but Ludia, and Diennu had theirs touching the ground. One of the women of the village offered to quickly hem the cloaks, so they would not drag along the ground when they walked. Krillgan was tall enough, that the cloak cleared the ground by a couple of centimeters, so they left his as it was. Kreen had been told that the fight was to take place in a clearing in the wooded area, just beyond where the archery competition took place. Kreen told the children, that it would be very difficult to make themselves small and invisible, when so many Sisters would be there. It would also make the Sisters suspicious of why they were trying to make themselves unseen. Now the dark blue hooded cloaks they are wearing, are normally worn by healers. They just need to keep their faces hid. They just followed Kreen.

They were able to make their way to where the fight would take place, at the same time, other Sisters started showing up. They decided to stay in the shadows of the woods. There was no brush to give them cover here. The Sister in charge of the group from the Frenzied River Clan, was introduced to the four Militia members who would be fighting her. The Militia members objected to the Sisters from the Singing Mountain Clan, that their opponent was not wearing any hand protection. It would be too easy for them to force her to drop her fighting stick. The Sisters compared hand sizes. The one who was a close match, let her borrow her gloves. When everyone was ready, the Sister who was fighting, told the Militia members they could begin. The Sister did not yet know how to prevent the Militia members from encircling her. When she took a couple of hits to her arms, and a whack on her back, she decided to jump out of there. Unfortunately for her, she did not jump high enough, so she got a few good whacks to her legs.

When she felt them encircling her again. This time she somersaulted out of the way, so that she could always face them with her fighting stick to block their attacks. They fought for quite a while, with the Sister always being on the defensive. Always jumping to a new spot when she found herself being encircled. Then she yelled in pain, having taken a solid hit to one of her fingers. She jumped higher and farther than she had before. When she landed she held up a hand to stop the fight. She told the Militia members that they had bested her. She tried not to show it, but she was in a lot of pain. She told them that she thinks her finger is broken. One of her Sisters told her that there are four healers just inside the woods that have been watching. Maybe they can do something about her finger. They can do something about her bruises when they got back to her tent.

Now the sun was setting. One could only see direct sunlight on the tops of the mountains, so colours were hard to see in the woods. Everything looked like it was a shade of grey. The injured Sister walked over to where her Sister said she saw the four healers. As she approached them, three of them backed up. Two of the healers that backed up, and the one still standing there looked awful small for healers. When she was close enough, she asked the healer if she could help her. At first the injured Sister thought the healer was wearing gloves, because the hands were darker than normal. The healer reached for her hand, and she held it out for her. The injured Sister wondered if the healer was under a vow of silence as part of her training, because she did not speak. Because the tips of her fingers were exposed, the healer held both of her hands around the injured Sister's finger tips. That's how she realised the healer was not wearing gloves. Then she decided that the healer's hands must be stained from all the medicinal plants she must have been picking. The Sister wondered when the healer was going to do something besides hold her hand. She did not even offer her a medicinal leaf to chew on to lesson her pain. Finally the healer let go of her finger tips. The Sister was disappointed with this healer, and went to one of the Sisters from the Singing Mountain Clan to complain. She told her that the healer must be inexperienced, because all she did is touch her.

The Sister asked her if she felt anything, while the healer held her hand. She said no. Then she asked her if she felt anything now. That is when she noticed that she was not feeling any pain in her finger, no stiffness in her muscles, and no soreness in any of the places she was hit. The Sister told her that most people feel a tingling feeling when this healer heals them. She is one of the few that felt nothing. The Sister asked her to remove the practise gloves, and gently feel the finger digit that was broken. When she did she said she felt a hard lump, around her finger. The Sister told her that was normal. The body automatically deposits extra bone mass where a bone has been injured, as part of the healing process. She asked the Sister if the healer was able to do this because the healer's hands were stained with the juice of the medicinal plants she picked. The Sister refrained from saying, that if this healers hands are stained, it would be from a berry bush he found. Instead she told her that she is not a healer, so does not know how this healer heals.

She went back to thank the healer for healing her, but when she did. All four healers were gone. She hoped she did not insult the healer.

When she returned to her tent, the other Sisters checked her out. She did not have any fresh bruises, in any of the places they saw her get hit. They did see discoloration. What they saw was what looked like bruises that were fading away. They had never encountered a healer that could heal like that.

When they were first planning this trip to the Singing Mountains, for non-force users. The Clan Mother had asked Mother Andriel and Father Chitrah, if they could make a backpack for a Rancor, similar to the backpacks they had when they first arrived. Using a strong clothe fabric, reinforced with leather.

Borrowing from a cart harness, they were able to make a backpack that would hold almost a half cart load of provisions. When the Herd Mother tried it on, she gave her approval. With the help of the other seamstresses, the other cobblers, and the blacksmiths. They were able to produce another five Rancor backpacks in very short order. The Rancor would carry all the tents as well as all the food supplies for the people going to the singing mountains. They had to use the backpacks because of the terrain. Since you could only take carts, if you carried them all the way.

While they were packing everything up in the morning. The Sister in charge of the Frenzied River Clan's people, approached the Clan Mother, and asked her to relay her apologies to the healer who healed her last night, she had never been healed by touch alone before, and had thought the healer was negligent in her administrations. The Clan Mother knew that there was only one healer, who could heal by touch, and called over one of the Sisters that was at the fight last night, to explain what happened. She told her that Kreen and her three pupils had shown up at the fight, wearing the blue hooded cloaks of healers. The Sister's finger was broken in the fight, and one of her Sisters suggested that she ask the healers to help her. She approached Krillgan because the other three had backed up. Because of the poor light, she thought that his hands were stained from picking medicinal plants. She is one of the few people that does not feel anything, while Krillgan is healing them. So she thought at first, that our healer wasn't doing her job properly, and came over to her to complain. When she pointed out that she really was healed. She went back to apologise, and thank the healer. But Kreen and the children were already gone. The Clan Mother made sure that Krillgan was actually not seen, even though he had performed the healing. She reminded her Clan Mother that the Sister thought she was dealing with a female healer, whose hands were stained. Mother was very impressed with Kreen, and how she was able to keep her children out of sight, while they could clearly been seen.

Kreen took her charges back to the Sisters' training area. This training area was carved out of the midland forest at the base of the escarpment separating the midlands from the highlands. When the Nightsisters were given the southern coastal swamp with the Sandstone Mountain. The Sisters of the Singing Mountain Clan wanted a place where they could train each other to fight, and not be spied upon by the Nightsisters. The Basilly trees in this section of the forest are over three hundred meters tall. Some of the really old trees are so big around, that when Kreen, Krillgan, Ludia, Diennu, and Protector tried to reach around a trunk, they could not make it. The Sisters who originally cut down the trees, had to use their Dathomirite swords to do so.

They did not know, when they started cutting the trees down, that a pack of Purbole had nested in the upper branches. Now the Kwa had nicknamed the Purbole, as the little men of the forest, because they have a basic humanoid shape. They stood on average 1.3 meters, when they stood upright. Fur covered their upper arms and upper legs. Their torso was also covered in fur, except for their bare belly and chest. Their face was free of fur except for their jawline and chin, making them look like they had small beards. Their arms extended below their knees, and their legs resembled the hind legs of a canine. Their ears resembled small canine ears, and their nose looked like in had been squashed into their face.

When the Sisters discovered their abandoned nest, they were surprised to find evidence that a fire had been used in the nest. They did not know if the Purbole had discovered how to make fire, or if they knew how to transport the hot embers of a lightning strike, and learnt how to keep it burning, without burning down their nest. Their favorite prey animals, were the Baz nitch, and the Dathomir Boar. The Baz nitch, they could club with a stick, when it passed underneath the branch they were on. The Dathomir Boar was much more difficult to catch, and required team work. Since the boars traveled in herds in the midland forests. The Pubole had to be precise with their attack. Usually one Purbole would hold the legs of another, while it swung down and grabbed a hind leg of a boar, and tried to pull it up into the tree. If the timing was off, the boars that were following the boar that was targeted, would try to grab a limb of a Purbole, in its jaw, and break it with the strength of its jaw. They would also try to pull both Purbole out of the tree, because their body mass was usually higher than the Purbole. Then they would trample them to death. It was this weight difference that made it so hard to pull the boar up into the tree. They would take turns dragging the boar up the tree. When they were about 25 meters above their target branch. They would drop the boar head first, so that it would land on its head, killing it. They would use the boars own tusks, to carve up the body of the boar, making it easier to transport its body to their nest.

The Sisters lifted the pieces of the trees they cut down, up to the highlands.

Because it was a hardwood, the blacksmiths liked to use the wood in their forge. Before Chitrah and the water wheel. Their used to be three parts to an apprentice's training. First they had to man the bellows of the forge, to start building up their arm muscles. Then they had to chop the wood for the forge, from the pieces the Sisters had transported to the highlands. They estimated that there is enough wood in the pieces, that they will be chopping it for quite a number of generations still. After the blacksmiths were satisfied that their arms were strong enough from chopping the wood, then they would assist the blacksmith in the forge. After the water wheel was built. Chitrah used some of its power to work the blacksmiths bellows, which gave the blacksmith greater control over the heat of the forge. So now apprentices are sent straight to chopping wood, to build up arm strength. The carpenters also love working with this wood. The gates of every Singing Mountain Clan village is made from this wood. So is most of their furniture.

The hardest thing the Sisters found in clearing the area, was in removing the tree stumps. All the Sisters had to get together, using the force, just to pull one stump out of the ground. Once it was all cleared. They rolled one piece of the main trunk of a tree that had no branches coming out, to flatten the ground. The branches coming out of the main trunk of a tree, are just as thick around, as the logs used in building the palisades around each village. With skill, a force user could travel across the entire forest without touching the ground. This was a skill the children needed to learn. Kreen told them they would be playing Moog and Rancor, with the key being that they were not allowed to touch the ground. She would be the first Rancor, and whoever she caught would be the next Rancour. Then she would leave them to go back to her warrior training. She pretended to try and chase each one of them. But the one she wanted to catch was Krillgan, because he was the fastest, and would be best, as the next Rancor.


	10. Chapter 10

©2016

After traversing the mountain pass, and entering the mountain valley that would lead them to the Singing Mountains. Saurian fliers attacked. The Sisters from both clans defended the people by tossing small rocks into the bodies of the Saurians. They did not want to kill them, just hurt them enough, so that they would be looking for a meal somewhere else. Of the non-force users, it was only Andriel and Chitrah that had raised their fighting sticks, which were being used as walking sticks, to defend themselves and Erin. The rest of the people just crouched down and cowered in fear.

The hardest part with this expedition, was finding a suitable place to set up the tents each evening. If they were looking for a place only for the tents, it would not have been a problem. But they were also looking for a place where all the Sisters could practise their new moves. And they needed a place, preferably with soft ground, where Andriel and Chitrah, could train the women in self-defence.

Andriel and Chitrah had brought their practise suits, in their own backpacks, which made the packs look like they were stuffed to overflowing. Erin had seen his parents in their practise suits before, but had never seen them practise. There were plenty of girls and women in the village that volunteered to look after him, while the parents went out to practise. So when he saw them starting to throw each other around, he started to cry, because he thought they were hurting each other. They had to stop quite often to reassure him that they were only playing, and not really hurting each other. It was only after they stopped, and Andriel came over to hold him, while the rest of the women got up to try and copy, what Andriel and Chitrah had just shown them, that Erin did realise that it was only play, because the rest of the woman were also doing it. With some of the women laughing at themselves.

The next morning after they had their breakfast, and were starting to pack everything up. The Saurian fliers returned, and there was more of them. This time some of the women also raised their fighting sticks, like Andriel and Chitrah. Why should they cower, when they had the ability to defend themselves? Andriel and Chitrah were proud that some of what they taught was sinking in. The Sisters were able to drive them off, without killing any of them. After all, this was their territory, they were the invaders. That evening Erin did not cry as he sat in the lap of one of the women, watching his parents practise. The next morning, when the Saurian fliers returned in even greater numbers. All the women raised their fighting sticks, showing that they were ready to defend themselves. This time the Saurian fliers broke of their attack early. There were no longer any easy targets among them, and they never returned.

After a few days of playing Moog and Rancor, amongst the branches of the forest. The children were bored, and wanted something else to do, but did not want to interrupt Kreen with her training. They had found all the Sisters that were guarding the training area, while playing Moog and Rancor. So they decided to go talk with them. They found out that they were all sensitive to life force, like Krillgan, and that they were all healers. They were the ones who told them about the little men of the forest, and that they had nests nearby, near the top of the forest canopy. The children decided they wanted to visit the Purbole. After all, climbing a three hundred meter tall tree, is much easier than climbing the 800 meter escarpment.

As they neared the canopy, Krillgan had them slow down. He could sense that lifeforms were approaching them. Suddenly they found themselves under attack. Someone was throwing Basilly nuts and small branches at them. Krillgan's reaction was to catch them using the force, and throw them right back. No one told him that it was supposed to be hard to do, using the force like that. Ludia caught them using the force. She kept the nuts, and tried throwing the branches back with her hand, only they never went where she wanted them to. Diennu first made herself appear real small, and became invisible to the Purbole. Then she reached out with the force, to see if she could communicate with them, like she could with the Rancor. She found it much harder to communicate, believing it was because they were not as intelligent. She was able to find out why they were throwing things at the children. The Purbole that she was able to have open up to her, said that they smelt like Rancor. They were afraid that they would lead the Rancor right to them. She told the Purbole that if they continue to throw sticks at the children, then they will become angry and go get the Rancor. So the Purbole convinced the rest of the pack to stop throwing sticks. The pack had already started slowing down in throwing sticks. Because Krillgan was able to throw them right back where they came from. They did not like being hit by a stick they just threw.

Diennu asked the Purbole if they were throwing the Basilly nuts, because they contain poison.

When they were playing Moog and Rancor, they found some Basilly nuts. After they removed the outer husk to get to the hard shell of the nut inside, Krillgan told them to stop. There was poison in the nut itself.

The Purbole told her that the nuts, are food. They throw them because they are easy to throw. She asked him, how they get rid of the poison? He told her that fire chases the poison away. She asked him, how they will know that it is safe to eat a nut? The Purbole told her that the nut will tell you when it is ready for you to eat it. She asked how they will know. The Purbole was getting angry with the voice in its head. "YOU WILL KNOW!"

Diennu told Ludia and Krillgan, that they can eat the nuts, if they chase the poison away using fire. Ludia already had a small collection of nuts, but nothing to carry them in. Krillgan took off his shirt, and tied the end of the sleeves, and the head hole. He handed his shirt to Ludia to fill with nuts. Diennu told the Purbole that they can throw some more nuts, the children will not throw them back, and will not be angry with them. The Purbole had a lot of nuts. So Diennu and Ludia took off their blouses, and did what Krillgan had done to his shirt. When they had them all full. Diennu told the Purbole that they can stop throwing nuts. She told the Purbole that she knows the woman who is in charge of this territory that they are in. The children were going to take their nuts, and present it as a gift to her on their behalf. Because she also controls the Rancor. Whenever they go out to harvest the nuts, they should bring some as a gift to her, so that she will not send the Rancor after them, but will protect them.

The children descended with their improvised sacks of nuts, and some of the Purbole followed them, to see who they would give the nuts to.

Amblin-Elu had come to the training area, to see how the training is going, and to get Kreen's report on the challenge. She found her at the edge of the clearing, staring up into the trees. She asked Kreen, where the children are, and Kreen pointed up into the trees. She told Mother that the children had talked to the guards earlier today. Instead of coming back to the training area, or continuing with their exercises. The one guard noticed that they went up towards the canopy. She came back to warn us, because Purbole have their nests up there.

When Kreen first started looking into the trees, she spotted a shower of sticks that petered out, then stopped. But no activity since. She did not want to go charging up the trees, in case the children had managed somehow to communicate with them, and she showed up and upset everything. Mother told Kreen that she did the right thing. Even though as a mother, she wanted to charge straight up there to check things out. Instead she reached out with the force, to see if she could detect them up there. She was able to sense the children approaching. They were not alarmed, they seemed their usual cheerful selves. They were also being followed by three creatures. But they were too far apart to be chasing them. Probably making sure they left their area. A short time later Kreen said that she could see them, and they appear to be descending quite quickly.

A short time later Kreen spoke again, "Oh my gosh! You're not going to believe this. None of them has their tops on." Amblin-Elu could also see that all three of them were naked above the waist, which to her was not a big thing, because they are all children. They were all carrying something that looked like a sack.

When they drew closer, Ambling-Elu knew what had become of their tops. The other Sisters in the training area, had stopped their training, when they noticed that Mother, Butashe and Kreen had been staring up into the trees for a while. They had started coming over to see what was going on. Suddenly the children jumped down out of the trees. Both Diennu, and Ludia, dropped their sacks and jumped into their mothers arms. Ludia started telling her mother about encountering the Purbole, and how they threw sticks and nuts at them. Diennu made herself invisible, she just caught what was thrown at her, but Krillgan was able to catch them and throw it right back, just as hard. Amblin-Elu told her daughter that this was a good skill to have. Maybe she can get him to teach her.

After hugging her daughter, Butashe told her daughter, "It is not proper for a young lady to remove her blouse in the presence of a gentleman." Krillgan, wanting to defend his friends, told her, "There was no gentleman up there. Just me." Which made all the Sisters laugh, including the two mothers. Krillgan could not understand what they were laughing about. Diennu, and Ludia, could not understand what they were laughing at either. He just told the truth.

The children showed Mother all the nuts they had obtained from the Purbole. The Purbole had watched long enough to see. Who was the important one! Who was the one in charge! Then they returned to their pack. They knew who to give the gifts to, next time they harvested the nuts.

Mother asked them, if they knew that the nuts contained poison? The girls told her that they knew, because Krillgan had told them. Mother wondered how Krillgan knew. Butashe had emptied her daughter's blouse, untied the knots, and started dressing her, all the while Diennu was giving Mother a detailed account of her conversation with the Purbole. When Ludia saw what her aunt was doing with her cousin, she decided to do the same before her mother starts dressing her in front of all the Sisters. She whispered to Krillgan that he should put his top back on. Apparently the Sisters don't like to see them without their tops on. Krillgan shrugged his shoulders, and did as he was told. After Mother was sure she understood what her niece had told her. She found a large flat rock, and started to recreate the Purpole fire pit that was drawn in the book of Knowledge and Wisdom. She built a small fire in the centre of the large flat rock. She surrounded the fire with a ring of small flat rocks. She then started to remove the husk from the hard shelled nut inside, and placed one on each small flat rock. Other Sisters that were near, did what she did, and soon every small flat rock had a nut sitting on top of it. They waited to see, how the nut would tell them it was ready for them to eat. A number of minutes passed and nothing happened. Some of the Sisters wondered if Diennu had understood the Purbole correctly. Suddenly one of the shells of a nut snapped open with a crack. Which made everyone jump, then laugh. Mother picked the nut up, as it had jumped off of the rock. In a matter of seconds, all the other shells snapped open, which made everyone jump again. Mother said, that at least they know how the nut tells you it is ready to be eaten. Now they need some way to test it. Krillgan suggested that he be the first one to try it. Because he has Devaronian blood in him, he is immune to most poisons, and can also detect poisons in his food. This was the first time that any of the Sisters had heard this about Krillgan, including the Clan Mother.

Ludia told them that it was true, she told everyone what Krillgan had told her and Diennu about their walk to the Singing Mountain Clan's main village. How when Father Chitrah found a new type of berry that they had not eaten before, he would wait for Mother Andriel or Krillgan, to come to the bush, and test the berry to see if it had poison in it. Diennu also shared what she remembered, how Krillgan never told Father Chitrah whether the berry had poison in it or not. Mother asked them why not? The two girls looked at each other, and answered together, "Because his mouth was full of berries." This again made all the Sisters laugh, because everyone knew how much Krillgan loved his berries.

So Mother allowed Krillgan to try the first nut. He sniffed it, than licked it, and told everyone that it had no poison inside. He popped it in his mouth and started chewing it. He said that there wasn't much of a taste, but would be nice to eat if you are hungry. The two girls tried it, and agreed with Krillgan. The senior most Sisters tried it next with mixed response. The rest of the Sisters cleaned the husk off of some nuts, and put them next to the fire to roast. After everyone had a sample, some said they liked it, others said there was not very much of a taste. They dumped the remainder of the nuts on a cloak, and tied it into a bundle, to take to the kitchen in the main village. Maybe they could think of a use for them.

When the nuts arrived, the lady in charge of the kitchen, remembered Mother Andriel asking if they had any type of roast nuts, and was disappointed when she told her no. She decided to put them aside until Mother Andriel came back. She would probably have some suggestions, as to how best to use them.

When the Clan Mother had a moment, she asked Kreen and her fellow healers, to present themselves in their hooded cloaks. Along with any evidence they had of their escapades. The Clan Mother asked her sister Butashe to sit in on the session when Kreen returns, and brought her up to speed on the challenge. Butashe had only known, that Kreen and the children were banished to the training area, while the guests were here. Now she was curious to know how well they did in the challenge, and what part her daughter played.

The two sisters had a hard time keeping a straight face when they saw the children in their hooded cloaks. They could not imagine how anyone mistook them for healers. After they presented their evidence, and explained what they did. Mother told them that they had almost lost the challenge on the first day. She told them that she thought she saw her daughter standing by the food table, but when she looked back to be sure, she wasn't there. Ludia was embarrassed, because she remembered Diennu reminding her that she had forgotten to make herself look small. Mother told them of how proud she was of all of them, for what they did, but reminded them that the challenge will continue, when their guests return from the Singing Mountains.

At the Singing Mountains, Andriel and Chitrah had told all the women, to take blankets, and spread them on the ground where they will be standing. They will understand why, afterwards. It would be impossible to explain beforehand. The Sisters from the Singing Mountain Clan, that had accompanied their guests, had become very close with the Sisters from the Frenzied River Clan, they felt that they too should have a chance to hear the mountains' song, if only briefly. They did not believe that the mountain's song was only for the people of the Singing Mountain Clan to hear. But they did believe that they had to protect the fact that there were large deposits of Dathomirite, on the tops of the Singing Mountains. To accomplish this, they convinced everyone, that they would have the best experience, if they kept their eyes closed. They were surprised by how quickly Mother Andriel and Father Chitrah, threw their support behind them. They convinced everyone that because it was an audio experience, they would hear it better with their eyes closed. They even had one of their Sisters with the musicians, to remind them to close their eyes when they stopped playing.

Andriel and Chitrah made sure that everyone had two people to hold hands with. The only exception being Andriel and Chitrah. Because Andriel was holding Erin in her right arm, Chitrah put his left arm around Andriel's back, holding both Andriel and Erin close to his heart. The people did not see the Saurian fliers when they took to the sky, when the musicians started tuning their instruments. If they had, they might have started to panic, thinking they were under imminent attack, and they had left their fighting sticks in their tents, as they were instructed. They missed seeing the Saurian fliers dance in the sky, when the musicians started to play. But they did hear the mountains awaken. They did feel the singing of the mountains in their bodies. Some of the women wept openly, but quietly, when they felt the singing. As slaves they never thought that they would experience anything so wonderful, or beautiful in their life. But because one woman, who still called them slaves, but let them know that they were worth more than any price that could be paid for them. They were able to experience something that was beyond their imagination. Erin started hugging both parents around their necks, when he felt the singing. The two Sisters who had taken charge, signalled the Sister to have the musicians stop playing, and close their eyes. When the Sister signalled back. The two Sisters reached out and briefly touched the mountains with the force. Like turning something on, then shutting it off right away. It was enough for the mountains to mix the force with the singing, and release a wave of the song. When the wave struck them, a number of women collapsed when the song went beyond the body, into the very core of their being. After the wave washed over them, everyone else lay down and went to sleep. The next morning, those that could get up, got up and prepared breakfast for everyone else, including the Rancor. The ones that could not get up, said that they could still feel the echo of the song in their being. All the evil that the Nighsisters had filled them with, was being purged from their being. Some even felt sorry for the Nightsisters. Though they could probably hear the mountains singing. They could never hear its song. If they did, it would destroy them.

Throughout that day, the wind kept the mountains singing. Surprisingly the people were not frightened by the sight of the Saurian Flyers dancing in the sky. In the valley everything was still. When it started getting dark in the mountains that evening. Everyone went back to their blankets, to sleep out in the open with their neighbours, in this most sacred place. It was the following morning, that everyone felt the mountains had released them. Allowing them to return to the Singing Mountain Clan.

The morning they returned from the Singing Mountains, the women told the Clan Mother that they were now willing to share their experience as living as slaves of the Nightsisters. The Clan Mother asked them, if they could do it that evening? The women agreed, so the Clan Mother sent out a notice of the meeting that evening, mandatory attendance by all Sisters. It was only the Sisters at the gates of all the villages that were excused from attending. Patrols continued without their Sisters, but were instructed not to engage Nightsisters. Just to continue with their patrols as if they did not see them. They were to let the Rangers track them and observe them.

After the women left, the Sister in charge of the trip to the Singing Mountains, told her Mother that she had disobeyed her, and let them hear a portion of the mountains' song. From the way the women talked, the Clan Mother suspected that she had. She asked her Sister to sit down, and to tell her what happened when they reached the Singing Mountains. The Sister started from when they entered the valley leading to the Singing Mountains. How Mother Andriel and Father Chitrah, were able to transform them from frightened cowardly women. To women who knew that they had the power in their own hands to defend themselves. The Clan Mother was surprised to hear about the reaction of most of the women, the morning after hearing the song, claiming they could not move because they could still hear the song inside of them. When she finished telling her Mother about what happened, she told her she was ready to face whatever punishment she gave her, for her disobedience. Amblin-Elu thought hard about the punishment this Sister should suffer for disobeying her. Finally she told her, that as punishment, she must share with all the Sisters, what she had just shared with her. When she was finished, she must then ask all the Sisters to forgive their Clan Mother for issuing an improper order. The mountains' song is not just for the Singing Mountain Clan, but for all the clans. They are just given the responsibility of protecting the source of the song. The Sister stood up and said that she could not do that to her. She is a good Mother, and it would be wrong to humiliate her in front of all the Sisters. Amblin-Elu told her that she was a good Mother, because she has Sisters like her who knew when to disobey her and do the right thing. She wants to be a better Mother, but can only do so, if the Sisters support her in the right way, not in blind obedience.

When Kreen heard about the meeting. She left Protector and the three children in the woods were they slept, and rode her Rancor to the main village, not making any attempt to make herself unseen. Their guests from the Frenzied River Clan had never seen her before, so they would naturally assume that she had been out on patrol. She went up to the Clan Mother and asked how they were supposed to keep her challenge, when they had a meeting that they all must attend. The Clan Mother told her that the challenge was over. She had placed them in a position where they would fail, no matter what they did, which was not fair to them. They talked about the best way to bring the three children into the temple, without actually being seen by their guests. Once they were in the temple, how to keep the guests away from them. The Clan Mother told Kreen, that the Sisters from the Frenzied River Clan had asked her for permission to attend tonight's meeting, when they found out what the women from their village would be sharing. She could not say no to that request. After making sure that they were clear on what needed to be done, Kreen returned to her charges.

Kreen gave permission to the two Rancor, to go hunting. They would not be returning until it was time for them to go to sleep. She told the children about the mandatory meeting. She also mentioned that there was a good chance that some of the stuff that would be shared, they might still be too young to understand. They had to keep silent throughout the whole meeting. They could not be seen talking to each other. So any questions they had, must be kept to themselves until after everyone else left the temple, and then they were free to talk again. This was going to be hard on the children, because they were always seen talking freely back and forth. Krillgan asked if it was alright if they held hands instead of talking. So that they could draw strength from one another. Kreen thought it was a good idea, and told them that she wanted to hold hands with them, in case she needed their strength. This was not something her and Mother talked about. But she could not see her objecting.

They all put on their hooded cloaks, and followed Kreen. She told them that the hardest part, would be not getting their cloaks snagged on anything, especially the palisade. They approached the main village from the east side. This time Kreen jumped up to the palisade where it touched the cliff face, that protected the north and east sides of the village. The children jumped up beside her. She stepped down to the walkway for the archers. That was on the village side of the wall. The children had to jump down. Kreen told them to check their cloaks. Part of Krillgan's cloak wedged between two logs in the palisade. They all tried pulling it free without tearing it. Kreen used the force to help push the two logs apart, just enough so that the cloak would come free. She then pointed out where they needed to land. The children did not have to ask why. Their noses told them what part of the village they were in. After landing, they followed the cliff face to where the ledge that the temple was built on came out of the cliff face. Any one from the village, if they happened to see them would ignore them. They were used to Kreen taking the children through the village, to find something for them to train on or with. So they wouldn't bat an eye when they saw Kreen and the children climbing the rock face to get to the temple. The good thing was that the guests did not come to this part of the village. So there was no risk of them being seen by them as they scaled the rock face to get to the temple. Rather than entering the cold temple right away. The four of them just sat on the ground next to the water surrounding the temple. Letting the sun keep them warm while they waited.

At dinner time Mother sent Kreen's best friend, Tannath-Elu, to bring them some dinner, and some new ale, to wash it down. She almost panicked when she did not find them in the temple. Kreen had been warned by Krillgan, that someone had come up onto the temple's ledge. So Kreen jumped into the temple, and brought her friend outside to where the children were waiting. Tannath-Elu told them they found a nice place to eat dinner. She was going to go get her own dinner, and join them. She asked if she should bring them anything for desert. Kreen and Krillgan looked at each other, "Berries!" Tannath-Elu smiled at the two young girls and said, "Why did I even bother to ask?" Which made them both giggle. When she returned, she brought a big bowl of berries, and told Kreen and Krillgan that they had to share, and not just with each other. Which caused the two young girls to giggle again. After they finished their dinner, they piled their plates and utensils in the big empty bowl, for Tannath-Elu to take back to the kitchen. The rest of them jumped over to the temple, and stood right at the back. Everyone else should be arriving shortly.

The Sisters from the Frenzied River Clan, helped their hosts carry all of the women into the temple for the meeting. When the Sister in charge of the group from the Frenzied River Clan entered the temple, and looked around. She saw the four healers standing at the back. She wanted to approach them, to talk with them. But two of her hosts blocked her way. They told her that the healers were in the stage of their training, where they were only allowed to talk with certain individuals. Unfortunately none of them were on that short list. The Clan Mother had talked to them about her, and they were not offended. They were just surprised that she could not feel the healing taking place. The Sister asked her hosts, if people normally feel the healing. They replied that most people will feel a tingling sensation in the wounded area, until they are completely healed. Then they asked the Sister to sit with them. When they sat down, she asked them if they had been healed, by the touching, and if they felt anything. They both claimed that they felt something when they were healed, but she should not worry. There are a couple of their own Sisters, who like her, cannot feel anything when they were healed. She did feel better knowing she wasn't the only one. She was about to ask them something else, but noticed the Clan Mother stand up to start the meeting. So she did not ask, and soon forgot what she was going to ask.

The Clan Mother informed everyone, that they were going to follow a different format this meeting, from what they normally do. They were going to ask the Sisters to refrain from asking any questions until the end. Only the elders and Clan Mother would be allowed to interrupt the guests, if they felt they needed something clarified. Otherwise they were afraid they would tire out their guests. She then turned the meeting over to the ladies.

One of them stood up to speak on everyone else's behalf. She started by telling everyone, that their Clan Mother had asked them, to share what life was like as a slave to the Nightsisters. "Considering we did not know any better at the time, we thought that life was good. It would even have been better if the Nightsisters had left us alone. Whenever they showed up, it usually meant someone in the village was about to die. So yes, we were afraid of them. It was a death sentence, to be asked to start training as an archer. As far as we know, only once had someone returned, that the Nightsisters had taken on a mission to be an archer. As far as the Nightsisters are concerned, none of us has ever returned, after being picked to be an archer. What we were told, was that four Nightsisters had picked eight villagers to be archers on an ambush. They ambushed a young Clan Sister accompanied by four archers. Her four archers took out four of our archers right away. When her archers noticed their Sister was having trouble handling the four Nightsisters, three of her archers started targeting one of the Nightsisters to harass her, and give their Sister a fighting chance. Their fourth archer continued to eliminate the archers from the village. The Nightsister that was being harassed, decided to attack her tormentors. She killed the archer that was targeting the village archers before she eliminated the last villager. Then the Nightsister went on to kill the other three archers. By this time the other three Nightsisters had managed to kill the clan Sister. At this moment a much more experienced clan Sister showed up with six archers, and killed one of the Nightsisters right away. So the three remaining Nightsisters were facing one clan Sister, two angry Rancor, and six expert archers. The last village archer dropped his bow and quiver of arrows, and ran for his life. He hid out in the village until he was sure that no Nightsisters had come looking for him. He was now sure that the three remaining Nightsisters were all dead, so the only ones who knew he was picked as an archer, were the people of the village, and he was sure none of them would tell." One of the host Sisters whispered to the guest Sister that she would tell her their side of the story afterwards.

What she told her, was that this was the first patrol for this Sister. She had five militia members not four. One of them had just started training as a special archer. She almost said Ranger, but remembered at the last moment, that no one outside of the Singing Mountain Clan knows about Rangers. When their Sister realised it was an ambush, she sent her best archer for help, because she knew there was another patrol nearby. Unfortunately they arrived too late to save the Sister and her four archers. They arrived just as a Nightsister had delivered the deathblow to their Sister. The Sister who arrived to help had jumped off of her Rancor, and killed the Nightsister that was delivering the death blow to her Sister. Her presence was enough of a distraction, so that the Rancor that had bonded with the Sister that was killed, managed to kill one of the other Nightsisters. The Sister had instructed her militia to ignore the enemy archer, and to synchronise their arrows on one Nightsister at a time. She kept the other two Nightsisters so well engaged, that they were forced to decide, whether to defend against the arrows, or defend against her. After they were turned into living pincushions, it was relatively easy to finish the last two Nightsisters off.

The woman continued, "Sometimes there was no rhyme or reason to why a Nightsister would pick a villager. Most of the time they picked women. On the occasion they picked a man, it was usually because they tried to seduce the man, and failed. When they selected the women, they would say that, "You're too pretty, or you're too ugly. You're too fat, or you're too skinny." The most common was that you are prettier than they are. If you look at all our faces, you will see that we all have scars from where we cut ourselves after we married, so that they would not think we were too pretty. Now there were some Nightsisters that have given themselves over so much to using the dark side of the force, that their faces were so twisted and distorted, that there was no sign of beauty left. No amount of paint could hide their features. Even the village Rancor looked beautiful next to them." This comment made all the Sisters laugh.

"The only ones they were not allowed to take as archers, were virgins, not matter how beautiful they looked." The Clan Mother asked, why was that? The lady responded, "The most precious commodity we could produce in our villages, for the Nightsisters, was baby girls. The village was required to notify the Glass Mountain, as soon as a baby girl was born. They kept meticulous track of all virgins, until they used them in one of their Bonding Ceremonies." This surprised all the Sisters, because they thought that Nightsisters could not bond. The woman went on to say, "We know that you have Bonding Ceremonies. We don't know what you do in them. But we are pretty sure that they are nothing like what the Nightsisters do. We are required to ask permission, if we want to get married, just like in all the clans. Only the Nightsisters will not allow you to get married if you are still a virgin. They make you come to their Bonding Ceremony. They start every bonding with what they call, "The Raping of the Bride." They dress you in some flimsy garments, before their ceremony begins, then two Nightsisters grab you, and drag you into their temple. There, a male slave is waiting for you. When the Nightsisters' Mother signals to start, he starts ripping the garments off of you. He has to be careful not to do it too quickly, or he will be beaten afterward. After all, this is for the entertainment of the Nightsisters. After he has ripped the clothes off of you. The two Nightsisters force you down on the special platform they had made for this. They have you pinned down with one firm hand on your upper arm. With their other hand they reach down and grab you just inside the knees. Forcing your legs apart, so everyone can have a good look at your place of secrets. When the Nightsisters' Mother signals him to proceed, he forces himself into you, while the two Nightsisters are still holding you. He has been told to be rough with you, at the same time as taking pleasure in what he is doing. If you struggle too much, or cry too much, they will instruct another male slave to have sex with you, after the first one has spent himself. The best thing you can do is lie there and take it. After he's finished, you cannot go and clean yourself up, or cover yourself with anything. You have to spend the rest of the evening naked. Serving them their food and drinks. All the Nightsisters want to see the bloodstains, when you serve them. Some of them will even touch your secret place to see if you are still bleeding. After that, any Nightsister can ask any male slave to have sex with them. Only they have to do it right there in the temple, and they have to try and seduce him while everyone is watching. Their standing as a Nightsister can go up or down, depending on how well they do. The male slave they most want to seduce, is the male slave who just raped you. They want to be the first to get his bloodied horn inside of them. They are considered one of their best seductresses if they can do it."

"You have to understand that all of the male slaves are controlled by three women. The Nightsisters' Mother and her two lieutenants. For a Nightsister to be able to take a male slave or two, to her room between bounding ceremonies, she most prove herself to these women. Showing she is a good seductress is just one of those ways. If she can't prove herself, then the only time she will be allowed to have sex with a male slave, is during the bonding ceremony. Sometimes, if they think the man you want permission to marry, is handsome. They will also take him to the same bonding ceremony, to rape him. They will give him a potion before the ceremony, which is supposed to make his horn of manhood hard, and keep it hard for a long time. He is naked right from the beginning of the ceremony. They will not signal your rape to begin, until they start seeing his horn get hard. He has to stand by the Nightsisters' Mother, so it is easy for her to see, and so it is easy for him to see his bride being raped. After she has been raped, two different Nightsisters take him and hold him down on the platform. While the first two hold the bride so that she can watch her groom being raped. The Nightsisters' Mother is usually the first to pleasure herself on his horn, then the two lieutenants, after that the female slaves that are on the mountain, are forced to pleasure themselves on him, before any of the other Nightsisters are allowed. If the Nightsisters think a slave is taking too long, they will tie her up and beat her later, at their pleasure. So the female slaves usually fake that they have received pleasure. The whole idea for the Nightsisters, is to see how many women can have sex with him before the potion wears off."

The women went on to point out, that all of the women there in the temple, had been raped by the Nightsisters. The virgin young ladies that did not have anyone to marry, were also raped, when the Nightsisters thought it was their time. They were then called widows, because they had no husbands. Often, these widows would sacrifice themselves, by taking a married woman's place, in being trained as an archer. It was believed that the Nightsisters did not look too closely at the women they picked. So if the right amount showed up the following day for training, they were happy." What the woman did not say, was that the couple whose wife she replaced, felt obligated to make the widow's last days as pleasurable as possible. Especially when you consider that her only experience with a man up to that point, was being raped before the Nightsisters. So the husband would take her to his bed, as if she was his wife, so that she could know pleasure from someone who loved her. To show her how much he appreciated her sacrifice on their behalf, and on behalf of their children.

She sat down and another woman stood up. "As bad as what the Nightsisters did to us, what they did to their own was worse. After I had been raped, and sent to their kitchen to retrieve refreshments for them. I saw a girl in a pretty outfit. Her body had only started changing, she had probably only experienced a couple of moon cycles. She was one of them. The Nightsisters' Mother was talking with her. She told her that if she did a very good job seducing the male slave she had picked for her, he would not hurt her. But would be gentle with her. She asked her Mother, how she would know she did a good job? Her Mother told her, that if she is able to remove all her clothing, without him touching her, than she knew that she did a good job. If not, he would punish her, and she would have to do whatever he asked of her. The girls had witnessed many of the women from the village being raped, that was part of their training, but they were never allowed to witness their own being raped before their turn. She was then made to stand on the platform and wait for the male slave to be sent to her. Her waiting was part of the entertainment, so the Nightsisters could see the nervous energy building up in her. The Nightsisters' Mother then went and talked to the male slave. She told him that he had to make sure that she did not get a chance to remove all of her clothing, before he ripped the last few pieces off of her body. He had to make her experience as painful as possible. Or she would strap him to the two pillars, and beat him to death. He had to wait until she had taken her seat on her throne in the temple, before he came into the temple, and the show could begin. He was allowed to pull her hair, choke her, slap her anywhere on her body, and grope her so hard that he bruised her young mountains. So the poor girl was setup. After tearing her clothes off, and making the initial penetration, he was constantly getting her to reposition herself, to try to give their Mother the best views possible. He knew that if he pleased the Mother, she would protect him. If he did not, he could expect to take a walk off of the top of the mountain someday soon, by the Nightsister he was raping. One time he had the girl on all fours, while he entered her from behind. He had a handful of her hair, and was pulling her head back as far as it would go. He also had her raise her one leg, as high as she could, so everyone would have a better view. If she cried, or refused to do as she was told. The Nightsisters' Mother would have her two lieutenants grab her and strap her to the two pillars. Her own mother, if she was still alive, would be ordered to beat her in front of everyone. Because she had humiliated her, and was an embarrassment to all the Nightsisters. If her mother was not alive, then the Nightsisters' Mother would do it herself. After the beating, she had to dress, and the whole show would start all over again. Sometimes with a different male slave. You have to remember, that all Nightsisters believe, there is no pleasure without pain."

After she sat down, no one moved in the temple. Everyone just sat their letting everything they heard sink in. After a few moments, the Clan Mother stood up and addressed everyone. She told her Sisters, that given this testimony, they need to rethink their strategy concerning, the Nightsisters' archers. They will discuss this at their next meeting. She asked if there was anyone there, who had a question. The only ones who had questions were Ludia, and Diennu, they had never heard of rape before. But they knew they could not ask anything until after everyone else was gone.

The Clan Mother thanked all the women for being so brave, that they were willing to share something that personal. She told everyone that there was tea and sweet treats waiting for them in the dining area. Mother Andriel had also made them something she calls nutbutter, from roasted nuts. She would like everyone to try. When the Sisters carried the women across the water, they would hug them before letting them go, and thanked them for being there.

The Clan Mother pulled the Sister aside from the Frenzied River Clan that was responsible for all the women. She asked her, if she would share their testimony at the next Council of Mothers. Since they were now members of her clan. The Clan Mother would give her voice as being witness to the testimony. Being a Clan Mother from a different clan, it would give the testimony that much more weight, and could have a bearing on future proceedings. The Sister agreed. This was something that the Council needed to hear.

After everyone left, Ludia, and Diennu, started asking Kreen about all that they heard. Kreen asked them to ask Krillgan, she was sure that he could help them understand, the little he knew, and let them know what they would have to wait to learn. Krillgan did not fail her. The girls were satisfied with his answers. Then they asked Kreen, how long they would have to wait, until they were old enough to learn about the bad stuff, and the good stuff. Kreen told them that when they were old enough to be allowed to attend the Bonding Ceremonies, then they will be close to the age, when some of this can be explained. What Kreen did not tell them, is that they would not be allowed to attend a Bonding Ceremony, until they had started showing signs that they had reached puberty.

The next day when Amblin-Elu and Butashe asked Kreen, how she answered the children's questions. She told them that she let Krillgan answer them. She reminded Mother about how well Krillgan had explained what the Rancor were doing, when they first brought Protector to the Herd Mother. Amblin-Elu stopped her, before she shared what Ludia had revealed. When the two mothers pressed her, she shared exactly what Krillgan had said. Then she told them what she said about how old they would be, before they started learning more details. The mothers were happy that their little girls were still innocent.

The girls took Mother's advice, and asked Krillgan to teach them how to catch and throw. Andriel was not very pleased when she found out, who they were playing catch with. They would pick Erin up, using the force, then they would throw him to someone else. Who had to try and catch him as gently as possible, than throw him back. The three of them learnt two thing from this. First, do not play catch with Erin, just after he has eaten. Or the first person catching him, would end up wearing everything he just ate. The second thing they learnt, was that if they were not gentle in catching him. There was a good chance he would bring up some of the food in his stomach on them. When Andriel first saw what they were doing, she tried to put a stop to it. But Erin started crying, he liked it when they played "Hashsh" with him. So Andriel reluctantly let them continue. After playing catch. Krillgan went up to his mother, and asked her if she was having another baby. Andriel smiled at him, and told him that she wondered how long it would be before he noticed. The girls were excited with this news, and asked her permission, so that they can tell their mothers. When they ran off, Andriel gave Krillgan permission to tell his father. She watched as he ran up to Chitrah and told him the news. Chitrah put down what he was working on. He raced down the stairs, and went up to his wife. He took her into his arms, and kissed her.

"Are we starting our own clan?"

Andriel kissed him back, "Maybe."

On the way back to their village. The group stopped at the town to rest. They found Sisters from the other clans there. Remembering their promise to the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan. They showed them the fighting moves that they had just learnt from the Singing Mountain Clan, and offered to teach them, if they were also willing to teach other Sisters, even from other clans. The other Sisters readily agreed. So four Sisters from the group stayed at the town to teach them, while the other two escorted the women home.

When the Sister in charge of the group, returned home. She went to her Clan Mother right away, and reported everything unusual she observed while with the Singing Mountain Clan. The Clan Mother called the elders, and asked her to repeat everything. When they heard that the Builder was called Father Chitrah by the Singing Mountain Clan, and his wife was called Mother Andriel, one of the elders said she may have read something like this in a prophesy, long ago. When the Clan Mother implied that her authority does not apply to the Builder, even though everyone believes that he is a member of the Singing Mountain Clan. The elders asked the Clan Mother to get out their copy of the book of Knowledge and Wisdom. She also told them about the healer that can heal just by touch. Then she remembered that the Clan Mother had mentioned that the Builder and his wife, are both warriors, and the Singing Mountain Clan has changed all of their fighting styles because of them, even though they are not force users. She mentioned that the women that were former slaves, believe that the healer that helped them was a man that spoke with a voice of a child. The Singing Mountain Clan has three very small healers, one of them healed her by touch. Could it be that a hermit healer has come with the builder and his wife, and is sharing some very powerful healing techniques with the Singing Mountain Clan? Their elders poured over every prophecy they found in their book of Knowledge and Wisdom. With the information the Sister shared with them, there were a number of prophecies that could relate to them, but then again, they might not. They did not know enough about the Builder and his wife, and this healer. They showed the Clan Mother the prophecies they found, and the questions that she would need to ask the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan, at the next Council of Mothers.

By the time the next Council of Mothers took place, all the Sisters in all of the clans had learnt the new fighting techniques. The Sister, like she promised, testified about what she heard the former slaves describe, as their life as slaves to the Nightsisters. After she finished, the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan stood to say that she was the witness for this Sister's testimony. All the other Mothers commented on how unusual this was, and how it gave the testimony greater weight. The Clan Mother from the Frenzied River Clan took this opportunity to start asking the Clan Mother from the Singing Mountain Clan, the questions that her elders asked her to ask. Instead of responding, the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan, asked all of the Sisters to leave the room. She spoke to her own Sisters, and told them that they knew what to do. Then she asked the Clan Mother of the Frenzied River Clan, if she brought her book of Knowledge and Wisdom? When the other Clan Mothers saw were this was going, they each stopped one of their Sisters, and asked them to go back to their main village, and retrieve their own book of Knowledge and Wisdom, and bring it back right away. All the Clan Mothers crowded around the Frenzied River Clan's book of Knowledge and Wisdom, and started looking at the prophecies in question, debating whether they apply to the Builder and his wife.

Outside of the room where the Mothers were meeting, a Sister from the Singing Mountain Clan saw a scavenger lizard, and fried it with force lightning. The Sisters from the other clans were surprised to hear what sounded like a woman's scream. The Sister explained to them that it was a Nightsister that was screaming, because the blast of force lightning hit her, as well as the creature she controlled. When they found out what their assignments were, they were eager to cleanse their compounds of the Nightsisters' spies. Unfortunately, they did fry some none scavenger lizards as well. This made them feel bad when they did not hear the woman's scream.

One of the Nightsisters, had managed to get her lizard, all the way into the room where the Mothers were meeting. She thought the clan Sister gave an accurate depiction of what life was like in their territory, and could not understand what they were concerned about. She thought that all the clans did the same thing. Didn't they also have Bonding Ceremonies, and don't their slaves have to ask their Mother for permission to marry? What was the big deal? She did not like that the Mothers had all crowded around the big book. Now she could not hear anything they were saying, and she could not see any lips, to read them. She was afraid to move from her relatively safe location. Especially because she could hear other Nightsisters scream, as their lizard has been discovered. She knows it is an important discussion that the Mothers are having. She also knows that when her Mother finds out she was in the meeting room, and failed to get any useful information, she would not hesitate to have her stripped and beaten.

When a Sister from the Singing Mountain Clan re-entered the room where the Mothers were meeting, to report that all of the compounds had been cleansed, she thought she saw some movement out of the corner of her eye. She stayed close to the wall, and quickly moved to where she thought she saw the movement. As she approached she saw some movement again. This time she saw it was a scavenger lizard, and it was trying to get close to the Mothers. She was behind it so it could not see her. It was crawling over some nice carpeting, and around some nice pillows. None of which the Sister wanted to damage with force lightning. So when she was ready, she lifted the creature using the force, and blasted it with force lightning when it was clear of everything. The Mothers all turned and looked at her, when they heard the woman's scream.

When they saw what the Sister had fried, they conducted a thorough search of the room, to make sure there were no more creatures there, being used to spy on them. Amblin-Elu thanked her Sister for coming in when she did, then asked her to wait outside and make sure they are not interrupted. The Mothers went back to looking over the prophecies, with Amblin-Elu pointing out which ones apply to Andriel and Chitrah, from what she knew about them. In this way the other Clan Mothers knew, that she believed that Mother Andriel, and Father Chitrah, were the couple in the prophecy. Which is why she did not consider them to be under her authority. She even told them about hurting the couple by mistake, showing them the potion she used, from the Frenzied River Clan's book. She also believed that the Nightsisters' successful attack on her caravan, was her punishment. This pushed home her belief, because the other Mothers knew that both she and her sister lost their husbands in that attack. She also brought out copies of Kindell's prophecy for each of them, telling them that this was something that she had recently found out, and the elders believe that there is enough fulfillment, that it can be added to their book. It is unusual in prophecies, because it was written, not by an elder or a Clan Mother. But by a Sister in love with the subject in the prophecy, and refused to marry him when he proposed, so that he could fulfill his destiny. She also added that the Sister was killed in a Nightsister ambush, shortly after she wrote down the prophecy. The Mothers questioned her about the third person mentioned in the prophecies, with the Clan Mother of the Frenzied River Clan, asking if this third person was related to the healer she heard about, the one who could heal just by touch. Now all the other Mothers wanted to know about this healer. Taking their focus off of Amblin-Elu for a while.

At this time the Sister sent to retrieve the book of Knowledge and Wisdom of the Red Hills Clan, entered the room, handing the book over to her Mother. The Mothers than poured over this book comparing prophecies. They found one prophecy that according to the way it was written in this book, could be applied to the Builder and his wife. Where the way it was written in the Frenzied River Clan's book, they were not sure. It was quite late in the day by the time they stopped analysing the second book, but the Mothers refused to retire for the day, until they heard about the healer.

Amblin-Elu started off by telling the other Mothers that Andriel and Chitrah were forced to marry. The planet they lived on was controlled by the Sith Empire. They are force users, similar in belief to the Nightsisters. This caused a stir amongst the Mothers. They could not imagine an Empire, controlling a large number of planets, run by the Nightsisters. They were told that the Sith Empire had been at war with the Republic and their Jedi Order. Now the Mothers had heard about the Republic from political exiles, and when the exiles stopped coming they assumed that they now controlled the area of space around their planet. They had also heard about the Jedi, and that their beliefs were much like the Misty Falls Clan, only more fanatical. Which would put most of the clans at odds with them. Amblin-Elu told the Mothers that at present there is a peace treaty in place between the two warring sides, which they are both trying to use to rebuild their forces in preparation for the next conflict. Since a large number of Sith were lost during the previous conflict, they are forcing couples to marry who have a good chance of producing force using offspring.

"When the Builder and his wife found out she was pregnant, they did their best to hide the pregnancy from the Sith. Neither one of them wanted their child to become a Sith. After the child was born, they were forced to flee their planet. Hoping to find a planet where the Sith would not find them. Where they could raise their child in peace. As the child grew older, they realised the child would need to be trained in the proper use of the force. They were cornered on a planet by an agent of the Sith. The Force intervened on their behalf. In the process of the intervention, the child received the ability to heal by touch. After their deliverance, Kindell's Captain found them, and knew that he had to bring them to Dathomir, to fulfill the words of the woman he loved. A number of Sisters in the Singing Mountain Clan had dreams and visions that a healer was being sent to us, including myself. You can imagine how surprised we all were when we discovered the healer was a little boy."

The Mothers sat in stunned silence for a long period of time, then they all started asking questions at once. She described him as being good natured, and kind hearted. A little mischievous at times, but when things were serious, it was like speaking to a little man. She described how he was the one who suggested that he eat the leaves that were used to counteract the poison given to the men of the village, so that the healing produced by his touch, would be more effective, because his healing touch was only slowing down the effect of the poison, not reversing it. This from a boy who hates eating vegetables and salads. By doing that, he was able to arrest the effect the poisons were having on their bodies, and minds. He actually saved their lives. The Clan Mother from the Misty Falls Clan, told the council, that her healers were surprised that any of the men were still alive. Considering the poisons they were forced to ingest, and how much time had passed before the Singing Mountain Clan was able to start treatment, to try to counteract the effect of their poisons. That their minds were functioning at all, indicated to our healers that a very powerful healing agent had been administered to the men, along with the antidotes. They informed the healers of the Frenzied River Clan, that what had been done was already beyond what they could do. They were disappointed that the healers from the Frenzied River Clan could not enlighten them as to what had been done, because they did not know themselves. Only that a male healer, that spoke with the voice of a child, was brought in to assist the Singing Mountain Clan's healers.

Amblin-Elu confirmed that the Singing Mountain Clan was training Krillgan to be a Sister. The other two small healers the Clan Mother of the Frenzied River Clan asked about, were not healers, they were just the friends that Krillgan played with, and trained with. She also shared her dream, telling them it was the most detailed of all the visions and dreams her Sisters had. They heard how in her dream she was told to protect the healer's family from the Nightsisters, and she was not to harm the parents in any way. Then she told them, as Clan Mothers, now that they know of her dream, they were also responsible to help her to protect them. They all acknowledged that they heard that in her dream as well.

After discussing what they each need to do. With the Clan Mother from the Frenzied River Clan, receiving permission from the other Mothers to let the Sister that brought this to her attention, be present when she shares this with her elders. They then talked with the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan, about letting the Builder share his fighting techniques with all of them. She told them that she had discussed this with Father Chitrah, and he was in agreement. He does not want these techniques being used were Sisters will be fighting Sisters. What he has already given permission for, and what we have already shared, is how to use these techniques when applied to the sword. So that they can be used against pirates, slavers, and Nightsisters.

The one Clan Mother asked her, "What if we all promise to stop the territory challenges, as they now exist. Could we be trained then?" The other Mothers asked her what she was proposing. She was thinking that there must be a way that one Sister can test herself against another Sister, without them beating each other to a bloody mess. Since that is what most challenges seem to be about lately. Protecting the territory has just become an excuse. Amblin-Elu told them that when Mother Andriel and Father Chitrah practise their fighting technique. They wear these special suits that make them look like they are very fat, but it protects them both. Because Mother Andriel is like a child first learning how to use the force. She has no control. The Mothers doubted they could find a material like that, that could protect them against a blow enhanced by the force. One Mother speculated that it would be nice if they could find a material that absorbed energy like water does, but in a solid form. Another Mother suggested that they hold all challenges under water, without the water element being allowed to be used. Now this sounded interesting to the other Mothers, but where could they take place. They asked Amblin-Elu, if she could talk to the builder about this. Maybe he might have some suggestions.

Then they asked her if they could arrange to have groups of their people visit the Singing Mountains. The Sisters that have heard them, keep telling the other Sisters that they have to go hear them for themselves. The women from the village that went, want to take their husbands. Believing that they will be changed in an important way. Now people in all of the clans want to go. Amblin-Elu proposed, that for the entire month, after the second planting. All territory be considered neutral territory, except for the Nightsisters. She then told them how many people from each clan they could comfortably accommodate. They would like every Sister who comes to them, be willing to give some sort of demonstration, since their Sisters will be giving demonstrations as well. She would also like some input, in setting up friendly, but challenging competitions, so everyone can be entertained. All the Mothers were for it. It would also give members of a clan, the opportunity to visit with another clan, without the threat of a challenge. Over the years this evolved into a yearly festival time. Sisters that went to other clans went from demonstrating fighting techniques in a dance style, to dancing with fighting moves being incorporated. They went from wearing Rancor body armour, to wearing colourful costumes, with ribbons and feathers, to try to show off their body movements. The elders got involved in approving the costumes the Sisters wore. Reminding them that they represent the clan when they dance, and children will be watching. They don't want to force embarrassed parents, being asked by their children, to tell them what they saw. Sisters from all the clans would get permission from their Clan Mother, to go visit Mother Andriel throughout the year, to get her help in coming up with costume designs.

Ludia, and Diennu adopted Father Chitrah as their surrogate father. Because he was their personal trainer when it came to the Martial Arts, and because they spent a lot of time at Mother Andriel's home. They stopped calling them Mother Andriel, and Father Chitrah. They just called them mother and father, like Krillgan did. Andriel and Chitrah preferred it that way. Andriel would try to organise outings for their family day. That involved Butashe and Amblin-Elu to be with them. Butashe loved them, and was always sorry when her sister did not show up, because there was a clan situation that required her attention. She thinks her older sister is still grieving her husband's loss, but at the detriment to her relationship with her daughter.

One morning Krillgan told Ludia and Diennu, that he wasn't feeling very well. Ludia ran right away to get her mother. He was a healer, how could he be sick? Amblin-Elu sent her to go get Mother Andriel, and Father Chitrah right away. She asked Krillgan to describe what he was feeling, while she checked the different points on his body that might indicate he was fighting something. There was no swelling in his neck or armpits. When she looked in his mouth, there was no sign of inflammation. Yet he complained that it was like a pressure had built up inside of him, and he did not know how to release it. She asked him if he had healed anyone recently, and it might have affected him. He told her that no one had needed him to touch them for a long time. When she heard that, she sent Diennu to the kitchen, to get a clean empty bowl.

While she was gone, Ludia showed up with mother and father. They asked the Clan Mother what she thinks is wrong with Krillgan. She told them that Krillgan's problem, was that the clan was healthy. They asked her to explain. She told them that the little creatures in Krillgan were always producing the healing oil, it was their waste that they gave off from living. Krillgan has not needed to use it for a while, so now he has too much in him, and it is making him feel sick. Now they have to find a way to get it out of him. They can't cut him to bleed him, because the wound would heal right away. When Diennu returned with a bowl, Amblin-Elu put it under one of Krillgan's hands. She then asked him if he could cause the oil to come out, from under his fingernails. Krillgan concentrated on the one hand. When he gently touched it with the force, then released it, it was like he was massaging his fingertips. Oil started seeping out from under his fingernails. After a few drops came out. He told Mother that he was starting to feel better. She made him keep going. She wanted to see how much he could extract by doing this. Drop by drop, he started filling the bowl. When it was a third full, Krillgan said that he did not think he had anymore to give. Amblin-Elu hoped his body naturally held some back in reserve.

Ludia and Diennu looked at the oily fluid in the bowl, and asked what it was? Chitrah told them it is Kolto, only it wasn't pure, he could see some discoloration. Probably from Krillgan's own body fluids, which would have come out with the Kolto. Amblin-Elu asked if he knew what should be done with it. He told her, that on other planets, apothecaries take small amounts and mix it with other healing oils, probably plant based, and keep it in small vials to be used in an emergency. Andriel had some injected into her hand when she had some bones broken (He did not want to tell them he was the one who broke them.) It started healing her hand right away. He was able to apply some topically, afterwards, to help with the healing. Amblin-Elu asked if that meant that her Sisters could carry a vial of healing oil, and have the benefit of Krillgan's touch, without Krillgan having to be there. Chitrah told her that that was correct.

After making sure Krillgan was feeling better, Amblin-Elu carefully carried the bowl of precious oil, to elder Yma's home, where the healers normally meet. She has the largest collection of herbs, both fresh and dried. Maybe they could come up with their own recipe for a healing oil. She could see all the Clan Mothers wanting to have a supply on hand, if they could. She was sure that together they could get the Great Canyon Clan to make up a large quantity of small glass vials.

After their Martial Arts class with father. Kreen used to come by and spar with them. Father kept a watchful eye on them. To make sure that they did not get carried away, but for the most part, he thought it was good for them. Kreen did it, partially because she found they were better trained than her own instructor, and partially because she liked playing with the children. She did not notice that Krillgan had developed a crush on her, but Ludia and Diennu knew.

At first they thought it was okay, but later they started getting jealous. They cornered their mothers, and asked them if this was normal for boys to behave like this. Neither one had any experience with boys, so they all went to Mother Andriel.

Now Andriel was expecting to deliver in the next few days, so she was kind of waddling around her home. When they asked her what she thought of the situation, she smiled having had some nephews in love with her. She thought she would have some fun with it. She sat down, and asked Ludia to go upstairs and get Krillgan, he was playing with his father on the computers. When Krillgan came down the stairs, his father and Erin were right behind him. Andriel asked him, if he liked Kreen? His cheeks went dark right away, so she had her answer even before he said yes. Then she asked him if he still loved Ludia and Diennu?

This made both girls turn red.

Krillgan said, "Of course I do."

Andriel asked him, if he let them know? He looked down at the ground, and started rubbing the toe of one shoe back and forth.

"I did not know that I had too."

"How is a person supposed to know you love them, if you don't tell them, or show them? I think you owe Ludia and Diennu an apology. I also think that you need to also give them each a kiss on their cheek. The next time you see Kreen, you should give her some flowers."

Krillgan went up to each girl and told them that he still loved them, and he was sorry if they thought he had stopped. Then kissed them on the cheek like his mother told him. They each told him that they still love him, and kissed him on his cheek. This brought a smile to all the parents' faces. Then Chitrah came up to Andriel, and told her that he still loves her, and bent down and kissed her on the cheek. Erin also came up to his mother, and told her that he still loves her, and Andriel had to lean forward so that he could kiss her on the cheek. The girls went home with their mothers feeling quite happy. They were no longer jealous. He had said he liked Kreen, but he said he loved them.

A few days later Kreen showed up just as they finished their martial arts training. Krillgan disappeared then reappeared with a small bouquet of flowers. He went up to Kreen, and told her the flowers were for her. Kreen was touched, no one had ever given her flowers before. She asked him how Ludia and Diennu feel about this. Krillgan told her that they know he loves them, and he would pick a whole field of flowers for them, if they asked him too. She knew from their smiles, that they were not hurt by this.

Suddenly Krillgan looks at Chitrah. "Father, I think mother is having the baby." Krillgan suddenly takes off running. With the two girls right behind him. Chitrah looks at Kreen and asks her what he just said. "He said that he believes Mother is having her baby right now."

Chitrah yells, "Krillgan wait. I need you to boost me so that I can run faster."

But Krillgan was already out of earshot.

"I'll help you run Father Chitrah." So the two of them took off running, with Kreen helping him, just like when they went to hear the Singing Mountains. The healer intercepted Krillgan, and asked him where Father Chitrah was. Krillgan suddenly realised that he had left his father behind. He turned around to run back and get him. Then he saw Kreen helping his father. He pointed to them so that the healer could see them. Then they both ran back to Mother Andriel's home. The healer went into the bedroom, and told Krillgan to wait in the main room with his father. Just after Chitrah and Kreen arrived, Ludia and Mother appeared in the door.

Mother noticed the small bouquet of flowers, still in Kreen's hand, but a little beat up from the run. She asked Kreen if someone had given them to her. Kreen said yes, then looked down and noticed they were damaged. Mother asked her if she would like her to weave them into her hair. Kreen did not expect this from Mother, but said she would really appreciate it if she did. So Mother had her sit down on a chair, and spread the flowers on a table, so she could pick them up one at a time. She asked Krillgan if he knew how to make tea. He said he did, so Mother told him to go make tea for everyone. Chitrah also got up to help him, it would give him something to do.

While she was braiding the flowers in Kreen's hair, she told her that she still remembers the first time someone gave her flowers. It felt real special. Kreen asked her if a boy had given them to her. She said no, her best friend gave them to her, and helped braid them into her hair. "Now here she is."

Just then Butashe, and Diennu arrived. Kreen liked this side of Mother, she made her feel special, at the same time as making her feel like she was part of the family. She wished she had the chance to see more of this side of her, and less of the Clan Mother side of her. She can be a very intimidating woman.

Butashe went into the bedroom than came back out. She said that it will be a while yet. Suddenly Chitrah came out of the kitchen.

"Has anyone seen Erin?"

Krillgan ran to Erin's bedroom, and opened the door. Erin was inside playing on the floor with the wooden blocks that his father had the carpenters make for him. Krillgan asked Erin if he wants to bring his blocks out to the main room and play, because they have company.

Erin asked Krillgan to help him take all of his blocks out to the main room, because there were too many for him to carry by himself. Chitrah felt much better when he saw Erin coming out of his room with Krillgan behind him. In his mind he went, "Everyone present and accounted for."

Andriel was much more relaxed this delivery than she was the last one. She was more used to how quiet the healer and the elder were. They were also more relaxed, because the last delivery went well, and they do not anticipate any problems with this one. When it was time for Andriel to hold onto somebody, the elder went out and asked Mother if she could help Andriel like she did last time.

Krillgan came out of the kitchen with a plate of biscuits that he had put nutbutter and berry jam on. Everyone liked the berry jam on the nutbutter, and thought that the biscuits went well with their tea. Chitrah had poured some of his tea into a saucer, so that it could cool down quickly, so that Erin could drink it with his biscuit. Now all they can do is wait. Kreen did not know if she should be there, but she also did not want to leave. She could see that they were all trying to be calm, but would explode if called upon. Butashe, Ludia, and Diennu, all told her that the flowers in her hair look very pretty. She assumed it was true, but it could also be that they were looking for something to say. They had all gone through a few more cups of tea, before they heard the sound of a baby crying in the bedroom. The elder came out, and told everyone that it is a beautiful, healthy baby girl. She asked them to be patient for just a while longer, before they will be allowed to enter the bedroom. Everyone congratulated Erin, on having a baby sister. Erin got up to go into the bedroom to see his sister. Krillgan was fast enough to stop him before he reached the door. He told him that mother was not yet ready for them to see her. First she has to feed her, then they need to clean her up, because this was very hard on mother. Erin went "Oh!" than went back to playing with his blocks. When the elder said they could go in, Krillgan picked Erin up so that he would have a better view, without having to climb onto the bed.

When Butashe noticed Kreen was keeping back, she asked her to come along. Kreen said that she was not family. Butashe told her that she was just as much family as she was. When Kreen realised that this was true, she was happy to go in with everyone else. This time Chitrah was not shocked to see a pink baby girl. He went right up and kissed his wife and sat behind her to support her. When Erin saw his sister, he asked his parents what her name is. Andriel looked at Chitrah, who reminded her that it was her turn. Andriel said that her father's mother was called Aliyanna, and she liked that name. Chitrah told Erin that his baby sister is called Aliyanna.

A couple of months later everyone in all of the villages heard a loud boom in the sky, followed shortly by a second one. When they looked up, they saw two ships coming down out of the sky. All non-Sisters ran for cover. All Sisters went to where they could best defend the villages. They had never experienced a pirate raid in the middle of the day.

Mother thought something was not right. They were not crisscrossing the sky, looking for a place to land. They were heading straight for a landing. From their current course, they looked like they would be landing somewhere North, Northeast of the main village. That was not an easy area for a Rancor to get around. So it was best to head out on foot. Butashe had already grabbed her bow and a quiver of arrows. She was also belting on her Dathomirite sword, and had slipped a dagger in each boot. Mother had her sword and daggers. She found Kreen's mother Kiranna, and Kreen's friend Tannath-Elu, not too far away. She told them to grab their bow and arrows, and to follow them. Kreen, Krillgan, Ludia, and Diennu, saw them leave the village, and decided to trail along behind them. Mother believed the first ship touched down on the small open field at the base of the mountain pass leading to the valley that takes you to the Singing Mountains. They approached the clearing with great stealth. The saw a human male on his knees holding the body of a human female. A human girl, probably a little younger than Diennu, was standing beside him with her arms around his shoulder crying. These were not pirates. The three aliens standing over them where sad by what they saw, two of them holding shovels. Mother ran up to the group, with her three Sisters trailing behind her. She told the group to look after their dead, and they will take care of the living. The startled group froze until the primitively armed ladies had passed. They had not even heard them approach. After they left, the Zabrack couple selected a place at the edge of the clearing, and started digging a grave. Kreen, Ludia, and Diennu watched from the bushes.

Krillgan when he saw the ship, he stopped dead in his tracks, and mumbled, "The Captain's ship." He quickly scanned the area. He saw that the woman was beyond his help. No one else appeared to be injured. So he hightailed it back to the main village, with Kreen, Ludia, and Diennu wondering if something was wrong.

Mother and the Sisters saw four armed men get out of the second ship that had settled in a small clearing. About a kilometer northeast of the first ship. The first two men were wearing body armour. Mother warned Kiranna, and Tannath-Elu to aim for exposed flesh. Butashe, being a Ranger would take out the second two. Mother had her Dathomirite sword ready, in case they were spotted, and she needed to deflect blaster bolt fire. When she gave the command, all the Sisters fired. Tannath-Elu took out the first pirate with an arrow through the forehead, between the eyes, just above the brow ridge. Kiranna took out the second pirate in body armour. Because he was partially blocked by the first pirate. She put an arrow through his right eye. Butashe took out her two pirates with clean shots to their chests. The ladies quickly jumped over the dead bodies, and boarded the ship. They made their way to the front of the ship and pried open the door to the bridge a small amount. They identified three targets. One of them was speaking on a hand mike to another ship. Mother traded Tannath-Elu, her two daggers, for the bow and arrows. Kiranna, positioned herself to open the door all the way, when signalled. So she would be out of everyone else's way. When the man stopped talking, and put the mike down Amblin-Elu shot the man that had been talking with an arrow thru his throat, to keep him from talking. The door to the bridge flew open and Tannath-Elu, and Butashe dove through the doorway, tossing a dagger at their selected targets. Doing a front roll, than coming to their feet. Two clean kills with daggers buried in their foreheads. Mother had jumped over both of them, while they were in their roll, pounding an arrow into the chest of the man she had shot in the throat, with her hand. Butashe and Tannath-Elu retrieved their daggers, and went door-to-door on the ship, to see if there was anyone else. They found no one else, so they returned to the bridge and informed Mother.

Krillgan found both parents at home, and told them that it was the Captain's ship, but no sign of the Captain. Chitrah looked at his son. "The Fenelar Phoenix is here?"

He ran upstairs to the rooftop patio, to retrieve all the equipment he kept stored there, not just his computer. He did a quick check that used to be routine years ago, to make sure everything was there and working. He went back downstairs, and asked Andriel, who had just finished nursing Aliyanna, if she was coming. Andriel really wanted to see the ship again, but thought it was best, if she stayed home with the children. Krillgan help boost his father's abilities, as they both ran back to the ship together.

When Mother returned to the first ship, she did not like that they were planning on burying the lady with just what she had on. She was worried that some of what she was wearing could contaminate the soil. She asked the grieving man if she could prepare the body for burial. The man said yes, and let her take the body from him. She asked him if she had a favorite outfit she liked to wear. He led them into the ship, to the first officer's cabin. He told them that his wife and daughter shared this cabin, because his cabin was not big enough for the three of them. He pointed out his wife's clothes. He did not know if she had a favourite outfit, except what she was currently wearing. He did say that she looked good in everything she wore. He told them that they could get water from the bathroom, and left closing the door behind him.

Now the other three Sisters had followed Mother into the cabin. Mother had laid the woman's body on the bed. While her sister and Tannath-Elu undressed her, Mother looked at the garments the grieving man pointed out. She found a pretty blue dress that looked like it was made from natural fibres, and decided to dress the woman in that. Kiranna found a container that looked like it would hold water, and went to the bathroom. She found soap, a washcloth, and differently sized towels. She grabbed everything, then tried figuring out how to activate the water. She hit a button that started water flowing out of the showerhead instead of the tap like she wanted. She filled the container, then tried stopping the flow of water, but could not figure it out, so she left the bathroom. Thinking, what a complicated way to live. As soon as she left the bathroom, the water stopped flowing, because of the no waste feature in the water control system. The women bathed the woman's body, but did not let her hair get wet. The only indication they had of how the woman died, was the traces of blood they found coming out of her eyes, nose, mouth, and ears. After they dried her body, they dressed her in the blue dress that Mother had selected. They laid her in the middle of a white sheet of bed linen. Then taking a corner each, they carried what looked like a sleeping woman, outside.

Chitrah and Krillgan, showed up as the Sisters approached the top of the ramp. Chitrah ran up to the human male, and asked him where the Captain was?

"I'm the Captain."

This was not the answer he was expecting. He ran partway up the ramp, so his head was in the ship.

"Computer?"

"Yes, Chitrah?"

Everyone but Krillgan was surprised that the computer knew his name.

"Where is the Captain?"

"Captain Chrashan Warman, and his crew have left the ship. I believe it is because I could no longer detect First Officer Dreshelle Warman's vital signs."

"Computer, where is my Captain."

"Your Captain Richard has retired and transferred all the codes to Captain Chrashan, including all my security codes."

"Thank you, computer."

Chitrah started to turn to go back down the ramp. "Chitrah?"

"Yes computer?"

"They are a good crew!"

Everyone was surprised to hear that comment. Especially Chitrah. He did not believe the computer had the computing capability, nor the memory capacity, nor the software to make that type of subjective comment. He wondered if the Captain had imbedded it in the Computer's memory, just for him.

Chitrah went up to Captain Chashan, and apologised. He had to know for sure that they were the legitimate crew. Then he saw the Sisters carrying the body in the bedsheet, coming down the ramp. Chitrah was even more embarrassed and backed out of the way. Mother sent Kreen and the children to go pick wildflowers and place them around the body. They were able to pick enough to make a small nest around the body. It looked pretty, and the wildflowers gave off a nice scent. The Zabrack couple had finished digging a grave. It was just over a meter deep. But should be deep enough to keep wild animals from digging it up. Mother had everyone step back. To let the Captain and his crew take over burying their dead. The Captain knelt beside his wife's head and started crying, his daughter knelt beside him and buried her head in his chest. Everyone could hear her sobbing. The Captain held his daughter close to his heart, until she stopped crying. Then he bent over and kissed his wife on her cheek.

"Goodbye my love."

Then he stood up. His daughter also kissed her on the cheek.

"Goodbye mama."

Then she stood up, and stood beside her father. He put his hand on her shoulder, and drew her gently to him. The Iktotchi and the Zabrack couple. Took the bedsheet and folded it up over the body. They then lifted the shrouded body and placed it in the grave. The Zabrack couple took their shovels and started covering the body, filling in the grave. Mother selected a large rock from the pass that looked like it had a pointed end. She remembered that when the last political exile buried his servants, he used a large rock to mark where he buried them. She figured that people who buried their dead, like to use rocks to mark where they put them. She lifted it by herself using the force, and carried it over to the grave. The crew quickly got out of her way. This was their first indication that they were dealing with force users. Mother rotated the rock so the pointed end faced down. She let go of it at the far end of the grave. Everyone felt the rock impact with the ground. It wasn't going anywhere.

Ludia and Diennu, went up to the girl and gave her some wild flower plants. She did not know what to do with them and just dropped them over the grave. Ludia and Diennu told her she needs to plant them so that her mother will always have wildflowers growing over her. They got down on their knees to show her how. She got down beside them. She thanked them for being so nice to her and her mother. They told her they understand. They know what it is like to lose someone you love. They told her that they both lost their fathers. They were also killed by bad people. The girl introduced herself, telling them she was called Rasha. Ludia and Diennu introduced themselves. Then they pointed at Krillgan and told Rasha that he was friendly for a boy, and gave her his name. Then they told her the young lady standing beside him is also nice. She is their instructor, and her name is Kreen.

When Kreen and Krillgan realised that Ludia and Diennu were talking about them, they went up to the girl to say hello. Mother took a cue from her daughter and started introducing herself and her Sisters to the Captain. His crew came over, and he introduced them to the ladies. He told them that the Iktotchi male is called Grimm. In his language Grimm means happy. His family name is also Grimm, so he is happy, happy, or very happy, depending on how you want to interpret it. The Sisters thought he looked quite serious. They wondered how he looked when he was sad. Mother asked him if he could see the future. He told Mother, that as an engineer, he can only see when something is going to breakdown before it does. So he can repair it before it breaks. Mother was a little disappointed. She was hoping he could see more of the future then that. When the Zabrack couple came over. The Captain introduced them as Kran and Elibet Vreemen. They had heard Chitrah's name spoken by the ship's computer, and asked him how long has it been since he has been on the ship. He said it has been years, his wife would know how long. It was this ship that brought his family to this world. Then he asked them if they knew what this world is called. They said the ship's computer said it is Kindell's World. Chitrah told them that it is very important that they not alter that name in the ship's computer. Captain Chrashan said that Captain Richard had said something similar, when they took over the ship. He said that there are certain planets that he gave special names to, and they were not allowed to alter those names.

Chitrah asked them what happened. They told him that two pirate ships had jumped them in another system. They were trying to get them to land on a planet. Instead they were able to jump to this system. The computer said that this planet was safe for them, but not for pirates. Unfortunately the two pirate ships were concentrating their firepower on their front laser turret, which his wife was operating. They were able to breach the casing, exposing the turret to the vacuum of space, causing the ship to seal it off. They were not able to get into the atmosphere and unseal it fast enough to save his wife's life. There is still a much larger ship out there. One that they cannot take on, on their own.

Chitrah told the Captain that he was a field computer technician, and has already run static and dynamic tests on all the equipment on his bridge, before.

Mother was wondering, if there was any branch of science that Chitrah was not familiar with. The Captain asked him to talk with Grimm. Maybe he could help him with the repairs that need to be done to the ship. Grimm asked the ladies if the pirate ship that followed them down to the planet's surface got away. Mother told him, that it was sitting in a clearing, about a kilometer away. He asked if he could be taken to it. They might have some parts that they could use to repair their ship. Mother turned to her Sisters and told them to dispose of the bodies. As they ran off, Mother told Grimm that she could take him there herself. Chitrah asked if he could come along. Mother told him he was welcome.

When Krillgan asked to come along, both Mother and Chitrah suggested that he show his new friend around, they were probably going to be there for a few days. So Krillgan, Ludia, and Diennu, took Rasha to show her their village. Krillgan found that he could boost her abilities just like he could with his parents. Rasha was surprised that she was running faster than she had ever done in her life, and she wasn't tired. Kreen was surprised when Mother said that she could go with her. She thought that Mother would want her to babysit the children.

As they approached the pirate ship, Grimm saw that it was an Aavman Extravagance 11-S Luxury Yacht. That had been converted by the pirates into a gunship. It was common for the pirates to convert Luxury Yachts, because they were easy for the pirates to commandeer, as they have little to no defensive capability. It was very hard for pirates to get their hands on the real thing. So they have to settle with a poor imitation, which is usually enough to frighten most freighter captains to surrender without putting up a fight, if they don't have a fast ship.

Grimm asked Chitrah if his equipment could measure the size of their gun turrets. A couple of them look to be about the same size as the one they lost. Chitrah told him he could scan them, and have their measurements to within half a millimeter.

They boarded the pirate ship which looked like a flying box to Chitrah. When looking over the electronics on the bridge, both men ignored the blood stains. They discussed what would be compatible with the Phoenix, and whether it was worth attempting an upgrade. When Grimm found where all of the manuals had been stored. Doing upgrades became a very serious prospect. They went outside to inspect the ship's drive systems. When they were first jumped by the pirates, the pirates tried taking out their drives. So the Phoenix's drives took some damage. It was only when they entered this system that they concentrated fire on the forward laser turret. Grimm believed that this ship's drives were close enough, that he could fully repair the Fenelar Phoenix.

When they arrived in the village, Ludia and Diennu assured Rasha, that the Rancor would not try to eat her. She was their friend. Krillgan took her to introduce her to mother, and asked her if there was some good clothes for her to play in. Andriel saw that what she was wearing, was comfortable for a ship. But would be destroyed with the way the children played. She asked Krillgan to take Erin, while she took Aliyanna, and all the children followed her to the seamstress's shop. Krillgan let Erin ride on his shoulders, so that he could pretend he was riding a Rancor. Rasha noticed that all the children called the Devaronian woman mother, so she did as well. At the seamstress's shop, most of the women stopped what they were doing. They loved watching Mother Andriel work. They always seemed to learn so much just by watching her.

Of course Krillgan had to stay outside with Erin. The only time he was allowed inside was when mother was making something for him, then the girls had to wait outside. He enjoyed playing with Erin, who wanted to wrestle with him on the only grass spot in the area. It wasn't long before all the girls came out, followed by Andriel holding Aliyanna. She had a little package in her hand, and told Rasha that she would keep her outfit in her home, so that she could change when it was time for her to go back to the ship. She took Erin by the hand and left. Now the children could go wherever they wanted to. There were so many interesting things they wanted to show Rasha.

Back at the Phoenix, Grimm went over with the Captain and crew, all the things they found at the pirate's ship that could be used to upgrade the Phoenix. As always the Captain had the final say. Using Chitrah's computer, he showed them the gun turret he wanted to install. He was looking to replace the damaged dual laser canons, with a quad turbo laser turret.

Now a laser canon is a bit more powerful than a turbo laser. But four turbo lasers are more powerful than two laser canons. The dimensions were virtually identical, and the power cables that connected to the gun turret could easily handle the extra load. It did not take long for the Captain to approve that change.

The upgrades to the bridge's electronics was a harder sell. Grimm had to enlist the support of the ship's computer, by describing each electronic component along with all of its connections and their ratings. The computer told the Captain that all of the components the engineer is recommending is well within the ship's tolerance for those components, and would have no known negative impact on the ship's overall performance. The computer estimated that there would be between a two to five percent increase in overall efficiency and performance. For bridge components, that was a lot. The Captain finally agreed. It meant that he would have to be on this planet, longer than he wanted.

He was nervous being around women who could lift up rocks larger than a man, and drop them where they wanted to, with relative ease. Three or four well placed rocks, dropped on his ship would leave him permanently grounded.

Even though he appeared to be suave. The only woman he was ever really comfortable with, was his wife.

That evening when Rasha returned to the ship. She was bubbling over with excitement. She could hardly wait to tell her father all about it. The first thing Chrashan asked her, was whether she had anything to eat. She told her father that she had dinner in the village with the children. They waited for her while she changed back into her ship's clothes, than they helped her run back to the ship. Her father asked her if she really ran all the way to the ship, from the village. He did not know how far away the village was, but he doubted his daughter could run from one end of the ship to the other without being a little winded. She said yes, the other children helped her, it wasn't very hard at all. Then she told her father about meeting a nice Devaronian woman who has two small children. Everyone calls her mother. She sewed some clothes for her so that she could play with the other children without wrecking her clothes. Then the children took her to a jungle, where she jumped from branch to branch. They were able to make it all the way across the jungle without touching the ground. They showed her a huge field of wildflowers. She hopes that mommy's grave looks like that someday. They even picked some and put them in her hair. She still had some flowers in her hair, but most of them were blown away from her running.

Chrashan was a little concerned about his daughter, he had never known her to exaggerate before. But saying she had a whole bunch of flowers in her hair, when he could only see two. Climbing up and down a mountain in an afternoon, when all the mountains he has seen around here would require at least four days of climbing just to reach the top. Being able to cross a jungle without touching the ground. All this in one day? He felt his wife's death had affected her more than he expected, and he did not know how to help her.

Chitrah overheard the whole thing. He could see the look of doubt and concern on the Captain's face. What was worse was that his daughter could also see it. He could see tears starting to form in her eyes. He had to do something. He called Rasha, he hoped that was the girl's name. She came up to him. "You're the man that our computer knows." Chitrah whispered to her, "I believe everything you said, except about the jungle. There are no jungles around here, there are only forests. Don't worry about your father not believing you. I will try to help him see the truth. You just keep on having fun with the children." Rasha felt much better, she was glad that there was one adult that believed her. "Thank you!" Her father asked her what Chitrah wanted to talk to her about. She told her father that the nice man told her that there were no jungles around here, just forests.

"I did not know. I thought it was a jungle because there were so many trees."

Then she went to her cabin before her father could ask her any more questions. It was strange being in her cabin all by herself. She could still smell her mother, like she was still there. She started crying because her mother wasn't there for her anymore. She was sure her mother would have believed her.

Chrashan went up to Chitrah, he wanted to ask him why he spoke to his daughter, and only corrected her about the jungle, when the whole story sounded so farfetched. But he did not know what to say. Chitrah invited him to have lunch with him in the village. He needed to get away from the ship for a little while, and trust his crew to do their job.

Crashan felt embarrassed, "You think I am supervising them too much?"

Chitrah nodded his head yes.

"Do you promise me, that no one is going to drop a big rock on my head?"

Chitrah laughed and said he promised. So Captain Chrashan agreed. Chitrah told him that if he has electrobinoculars, he should bring them. They have a rooftop patio on their home, and sometimes the things you can see are spectacular. The Captain promised he would bring his.

The children were waiting for Chitrah, to help him run back to the village. He told them that they needed to walk and talk first. He told them that Rasha's father did not believe any of the things that Rasha said she did today. It is important that Captain Chrashan believes his daughter, and that Rasha has the confidence to continue to talk to her father. So he told them what they need to do tomorrow, and who they need to ask to help them.

When everyone was in agreement, they ran back to the village.

Rasha was surprised to see the children, when she opened her cabin door. She was awaken by someone knocking on it. They told her to get dressed. They would stop at the village for breakfast. Father Chitrah has outlined what they are supposed to do that day. Rasha remembered that the computer called the blue man Chitrah. Maybe he was going to help her father understand that she was not lying. She was all excited, and dressed quickly. She knocked on her father's cabin door. When he got up to answer the knock on his door, he saw four bright eyed children looking at him. His daughter told him that her new friends have come for her. Is it okay for her to go with them, she will meet up with him later that day.

There were too many of them to say no to. So he said she could go. He had been hoping to talk to her about exaggerating, before Chitrah came for him. He decided he would have to do it after they both returned to the ship. He went back to bed after he closed the door. It was still too early for a civilised man to be up.

When he finally got up and dressed for breakfast, he was surprised to see that his crew were already up and working. They were finishing the dismantling of the damaged gun turret. Grimm had told him that most of it could be used as spare parts for the other two turrets. Captain Chrashan told them that they would be on their own for most of the day. Chitrah had invited him for lunch in the village. He was still not used to reading the facial expressions of Iktotchi and Zabrack, but he could swear he saw relief etched on their faces. He had his breakfast, than he went outside to his wife's grave. He wished that she was here to help him with their daughter. He was sure that she would know what to do.

He did not know how long he had been kneeling beside his wife's grave when he saw a man's shadow. He looked up and saw that it was Chitrah. He stood up.

Chitrah told him that he has arranged a ride for them, and reminded him about his electrobinoculars. When he came back out, Chitrah took his jacket off, and asked him to put it on, just to be safe. He did it because Chitrah asked him. He wondered, what wearing Chitrah's jacket, had anything to do with safety. When they came around some bushes he found himself face to face with a Rancor. Well it wasn't really face to face, it was more like face to navel. He froze, the Rancor sniffed him and did nothing. Chitrah grabbed him by the arm and told him to come along. He did not know how to talk with Rancor or he would introduce him.

The Captain realised that he came really close to embarrassing himself. Any more surprises like this, and he would have to start wearing diapers to be safe. They both climbed aboard the cart, then the other person in the cart signalled the Rancor that they were ready to go. As they were riding along the Captain asked Chitrah why the Rancor sniffed him, then left him alone. Chitrah told him, that because he was wearing his jacket, the Rancor smelt his herd smell, so he was not to be considered as food. The Captain paled, if he had not been wearing Chitrah's jacket, he would have been lunch, instead of going to lunch. How was he going to tell his daughter about this, without her thinking he made it up?

What a strange world.

It was a beautiful ride, it was also farther to the village than he expected. He told Chitrah that his daughter said that she ran all the way back to the ship from the village, and did not look winded.

Chitrah did not want to tell him that he did it twice yesterday. Instead he told him that the Sisters can run much faster than they were presently moving. The trip from the ship to the village was just a short jog for them. At that moment two Sisters ran past them, coming from the direction of the ship. The Captain had never seen a human move so fast on their own, and there were two of them, like they were out for a morning jog. Chitrah told the Captain that the Clan Mother must have asked them to get something from the pirate ship.

The Captain asked Chitrah if the Clan Mother was the tall beautiful scary woman. Chitrah laughed, and said that she was the one, only she wasn't so scary when you get to know her. She seems serious because she carries the whole clan on her shoulders, but she really has a gentle heart. The Captain laughed this time, "It almost sounds like you are setting me up." Chitrah assured him that he was not the matchmaker in the family. When they reached the village, the Captain and Chitrah climbed out of the cart. The third person unhooked the Rancor, than the Captain could swear the person said thank you to the Rancor using their body.

Chitrah led Captain Chrashan to his home. Inside he introduced the Captain to his Devaronian wife and two small children. The Captain knew that this was not a coincidence. He asked Chitrah's wife if she sewed an outfit for his daughter yesterday. She told him that of course she did. What she was wearing would have been torn to shreds the first group of bushes she forced herself through. She showed him his daughter's ship clothes, saying that she changed there that morning after they had breakfast. He then asked her if the children call her mother. She said that they do and they call her husband father. The adults call her Mother Andriel, and they call her husband Father Chitrah. She asked him if he would like something to drink. They have hot tea, cold new ale, cold regular ale, and some chilled fruit wine. The Captain asked for new ale. Andriel told him that she would bring him a mug upstairs.

When they went upstairs, Andriel stepped outside and told the Clan Mother that he asked for new ale. By the time Andriel went back inside. Mother had returned with a mug of cold new ale. She handed the mug to Andriel, then returned to her post outside. Andriel took the Captain his mug, and told her husband that his tea would be ready in a minute.

Chitrah pointed out a mountain to the Captain, and asked him how long it would take him to climb it. He told Chitrah that on his own, it might take him four or five days. With a local guide it might only take him only two.

A short time later Chitrah saw the signal that he was looking for. He asked the Captain to look through his electrobinoculars, he could swear that he saw people on top of the mountain. The Captain got out his electrobinoculars and zoomed in on the mountain's top. He had stood to make sure he had a clear view. He almost sat down again when he saw his daughter Rasha waving at him. Chitrah asked him who was up there. The Captain said that he just saw his daughter Rasha, but that was impossible, he had just seen her that morning. Chitrah asked him who else was there. He looked again. This time he saw all four children waving at him.

To Chitrah the Captain turned pale, it was like he saw a ghost. Chitrah asked if he could have a look see. The Captain handed them to him and sat down, saying it was impossible, they were all outside his door in the morning.

Chitrah waved his hand. It was his signal. If the Captain had not been looking down at his feet he would have seen a ball of force fire going up into the air, just outside of the house, then bursting when it was intercepted by a water javelin. When Chitrah sat down and handed the electrobinoculars back to the Captain, he told him that they did it in good time today. Could you believe that the first time the three children climbed that mountain, it took them almost half a day. Today they did it in record time, and they have a non-force user with them.

The Captain looked at Chitrah, "Are you saying that this is normal for them, to climb that mountain in such a short time." Chitrah reminded him that he said that this was the fastest they did it, so it could not be called normal.

"But how?"

"The three children are training to be Sisters. So they can run up and down mountains faster than a mountain goat. His daughter on the other hand, is one of a handful of non-force users that Sisters can share their force power with. So that they can run, jump and do almost anything as well as a Sister when a Sister helps them."

The Captain was dumbfounded, "Are you saying that everything my daughter said she did yesterday, she actually did."

"Yes, except for the jungle part. She was jumping branch to branch in the forest, just like the other three children." The Captain drained his mug. Chitrah asked him if he would like another. The Captain said that he did not know whether he wanted something stronger to drink, or something weaker. Chitrah laughed, he told Captain Chrashan they were having cold cuts for lunch, so he would recommend that he stick to the new ale.

A short time later Andriel, Amblin-Elu, and Butashe came up to the patio, with cold cuts of roasted meats and cheese. A fresh loaf of bread, hand sliced, with sliced fresh vegetables on the side, and a tray full of mugs of new ale for all of them. Andriel went back downstairs to get Aliyanna, and Erin followed her up.

They all seated themselves and Andriel made a small sandwich for Erin. Amblin-Elu told the Captain that she hoped their children did not startle him with their antics, sometimes they can be a bit of a show-off. He told them that their children doing it did not startle him. It was his own daughter doing it with them that startled him. Butashe changed the subject, and asked him to tell them about his wife. He told them how they met, than fell in love. How they wanted to wander the stars together. How proud they both were when Rasha was born. His wife named her. Her name can be translated as female antelope, or female goat. "Today she is living up to her name." He said his wife would be tickled pink, knowing their daughter could do this. He saw from their expressions that they did not understand the expression. He said that his wife would have been very pleased, and probably jealous if she could not do it as well. Amblin-Elu told him that his wife probably could have done it as well, because many things connected with the force seems to be hereditary, and his daughter did not get it from him. He looked at them with wide eyes. She explained that they touched him with the force earlier, but he did not respond.

After everything was cleared away, and they were sitting around sipping tea. Rasha suddenly appeared on the ledge surrounding the patio. "Wow. That was fun." Chrashan asked her how she got up there. She told him that she jumped up. He got up to look how far she had to jump. When he looked down, he saw the other three children. They waved, then they jumped up to either side of him.

Chrashan hugged his daughter, "I'm sorry I doubted you. Everything you said sounded impossible to me." "That's okay daddy. I'm glad you believe me now. Everything would be impossible if my friends didn't help me." Then she went up to Chitrah and kissed him on the cheek. She had tears in her eyes when she said, "Thank you father. You helped us just like you said you would."

"Your welcome."

Chrashan was also grateful that Chitrah had set him up. So he could be reunited with his daughter. Andriel asked the Captain if she could come out some time and have a look at the Fenelar Phoenix. The Captain said that he would love to have her see his ship. He was afraid that it hasn't changed much since she was aboard. He recommended that she wait four days to let the crew finish installing the new gun turret over the staff lounge, and clean it up. Rasha asked her which cabin she stayed in, when she was aboard. She told her that she shared the first officer's cabin with Krillgan. Rasha said that she would be sure that it was nice and clean for when she came aboard. Andriel told her that she heard that she did a good job keeping it clean right now. Rasha turned red. "It was Mamma that kept it clean. I'll try and do as good a job as she did." Andriel assured her that she will do as fine a job, as her mother. When Andriel did get a chance to go aboard, she had a look at the style of clothes Rasha's mother wore. Then she had an idea. When she returned to the village, she took out some of the off world material she kept in storage. She had Rasha's measurements, so she sewed her a pretty dress, in her mother's style. She burnt all the scraps, telling the other seamstreses that it would not be right for them to have some of that material when no one else on Dathomir could. They asked her about the dress. It looked like it was the right size for Diennu. Mother Andriel told them that it was for Rasha. The material would not be important to her, just the one who made it. The seamstresses agreed. Still they would love to have a peek at everything Andriel kept locked away.

When Andriel presented it to Rasha, she told her that here in this clan, they take one day in a cycle to spend time with their family. She was hoping that once every cycle she would wear this dress, and have her father wear a nice outfit, and then they could have a special dinner together. Rasha had to try it on right away. Everyone told her she looked beautiful. She took it off so that she could ran back to the ship without damaging it. Where she put it on for her father. She told him what mother suggested that they do. Now he understood why everyone called her mother. What a wonderful Clan, having two good mothers and one good father. Chrashan told her that they should start that evening. Rasha ran outside in her dress, and told her friends that she was going to stay on the ship for the rest of that day. So she and her father can have their special dinner together. They told her that that was okay, they would come back and play with her tomorrow.

When everything with the ship was ready, Chrashan was surprised at how reluctant he was to leave. He promised Rasha and her friends, that they would return. Since he was planning on coming back.

Andriel gave him a list of planets where he could find good tea for a very good price. In case he happened to be in the area. They gave him some casks of new ale, regular ale and fruit wine. Chrashan was able to use one of the Captain Richard's contacts, in the book he gave him, to get it all bottled. The bottling company kept half of the product and the other half was given back to the Phoenix.

The new ale was sold as Clan Brew, the regular ale was sold as Clan Hard Brew, and the fruit wine was marketed, as coming from the Singing Mountain Winery. They were accepted on the market as a premium product with limited distribution. Which meant that collectors and speculators got involved sending its price soaring. Whenever the Phoenix returned with new product. It was already sold before they started filling any bottles.

Now Mother had told the Captain, that she could help him for a while as he departs the planet, in case the large pirate ship was still waiting for him. She had instructed him not to go straight up because the Saurian fliers would attack his ship. After clearing the trees he needs to go out over the ocean before going up into the heavens.

The Captain let Kran take the pilot's seat, since next to Dreshelle, he was the best pilot on board. As they started gaining altitude over the ocean. Kran told the Captain that it looks like they have two escorts.

Amblin-Elu had made two force copies of the ship. It was easier to make a copy of an object than of a human. She was using all her concentration, and was connected to the ship by the force to do so.

The pirate ship was waiting for them. The Captain kept his ship a beam of them. It meant his ship was a bigger target, but all his guns could engage equally. Grimm took control of the Captain's station and piloting the ship. The Captain took control of the new gun turret, while Kran and Elibet took the rear two. As soon as the pirate ship came within range, he opened up. He was surprised to see the two shadow escort ships fire when he did. He thought they were just an optical illusion to fool the enemy. Because the two shadow ships were made out of the force, what they fired was force energy not lasers. The pirate's shields were ineffective against force energy, and the ship's hull started taking damage right away, from the first salvo. The pirate captain, being a coward at heart, decided to flee the battle rather than engage. He would have to tell his bosses that the two ships escorting the freighter were inflicting serious damage to his ship, and were taking no damage from his guns. They would have to try and get the freighter again, when it was alone.

Amblin-Elu had felt the force energy leaving the ships when they started shooting. So she knew the pirate ship was still up there, and tried maintaining contact. All of a sudden she started feeling strange, Chitrah noticed, and started yelling, "Break contact, break contact!" So she released the ship. They had to sit her down on the ground because she felt woozy. She asked Chitrah what happened. He told her that he believed that the ship was preparing to jump to hyperspace. If it had, than part of her would have gone with it, and she probably never would have been able to get it back. There is a connection between the force and hyperspace. The Rakata in their force powered ships were able to take advantage of it. If she had not let go, she might have become a force ghost in hyperspace. There are enough stories of encounters to show that there are some out there. She asked what would have become of the rest of her. Without the force to protect her, she would have gone insane and bled to death at her next moon cycle. She thanked Father Chitrah for saving her life. From the way she felt, she believed that everything he said was true.


	11. Chapter 11

©2016

The years rolled by. The Fenelar Phoenix came back every standard year. Each time it came Andriel would sew Rasha a new dress. She was told to give the old one to someone who would appreciate having it, on another planet. Rasha enjoyed walking through the markets on different planets to find a girl to give her old dress to. She would usually stand around with her father, in case the girl's parents said that she could not have it. She told them that the girl had paid the same price she did for it, so she had the right to keep it. They asked her what she paid for it. She told them that she had the look of appreciation, it meant something to her. That was the price she paid when it was first given to her. But now she has outgrown it, so it needs a new home. Most parents would let their daughter keep it when she explained it like that.

The Clan Mother told Kreen it was time. Her three charges were starting to show the signs that they were entering puberty. It was her responsibility to invite them to the next Bonding Ceremony. This was something she has dreaded ever since she met Krillgan. A boy becoming a Sister. She could only hope he would mess up somehow, and not be able to bond with them. If he was able to bond successfully with everyone, it would prove that he is the important one mentioned in her great aunt's prophecy, not her. She would no longer be important, she would just be another Sister. She did as she was told, and invited them to the next Bonding Ceremony. She also made sure that Mother Andriel and Father Chitrah knew, because she heard that this was one part of becoming a Sister that they were not pleased with. Maybe they would intervene and force him to back out. Mother would have to listen to them.

The day came, and no one intervened, much to Kreen's disappointment. The Singing Mountain Clan holds their Bonding Ceremony in two different locations, depending on what time of year it is. In the coldest months they have a secondary temple in the forest that receives a lot of sunlight, so it is quite warm even on a cold evening. Tonight's Bonding Ceremony was being held in the main temple, where it is always chilly, even more so when you have no clothes on.

The Clan Mother prefers the main temple for the first bonding ceremony, because you cannot stand by yourself for very long. You have to get close to everyone else just to stay warm. The Sisters would constantly move around allowing the Sisters that have been standing on the outer edge of the group into the middle where they can warm up. Mother likes it, because it forces the Sisters to look after one another for their own wellbeing. They undress in the anti-chamber, before proceeding into the temple. When Krillgan walked into the temple, Kreen started to complain to the Sisters around her about how he was staring at them. Mother was close enough to remind her that everyone stares at their first Bonding Ceremony, then she told them to look at her daughter and look at her niece, they are both staring just as hard as Krillgan. This can be an emotionally hard time for children, to be exposed to so many mature naked female bodies at one time. Where the only naked bodies they have seen up until now is their own, and any infant that a mother would be bathing. Kreen wanted to defend herself,

"But look at where his hands are. He is trying to keep himself covered up."

"Look at where Ludia and Diennu have their hands, they are also covering themselves up, but in a different places. (Ludia and Diennu had covered their chests, as well as their secret place, because that was where they were the most different from all the Sisters.) Kreen has it been so long ago that you have forgotten your first Bonding Ceremony."

Kreen, remembered very well. She was tall and lanky, her own instructor made fun of how lean she was, saying that they needed to tie her down, so she would not be blown away in the wind. She did not know at the time that she was only teasing her. She really loved her, and wanted her to be strong. She cried at night because she felt so ugly when they teased her. It was the Clan Mother and her sister Butashe that spoke kind words to her on her first Bonding Ceremony. They told her that someday soon, she would look just as beautiful as her mother. The Clan Mother went up to the three children. She told them that it was not polite to cover yourself with your hands at a Bonding Ceremony.

"You are here so that we can accept you as you are. We can't do that if you hide any part of yourself from us."

Diennu spoke up, "But Aunt Amblin-Elu, you're so beautiful, even without your clothes on, and we are not."

"Diennu, thank you for your kind words. You have always been so beautiful in your heart. This is what all the Sisters want to see. As far as your body is concerned, one day you will look so much like your mother, that everyone will think that you are sisters, not your mother and myself."

All the Sisters were heard to murmur. A prophecy at a first Bonding Ceremony, this is a very good sign for all three children.

"Ludia, you are my daughter. So the way you see me now, is how you will look in a few years."

"Krillgan, don't worry, you will not look like your mother."

This caused many of the Sisters to giggle, especially the two standing beside him.

"Your father is a smart handsome man. You have big shoes to fill."

A lot of the Sisters took it as a pun, on Father Chitrah being a cobbler.

Mother told them to stand with the other Sisters so that they don't get cold. The Sisters opened a gap for them so that they could come in and warm up. Krillgan tried so hard not to touch anyone's body except Ludia and Diennu, because he was afraid that they would take it the wrong way. So they ended up sandwiching him between them, so they could all stay warm.

The ceremony started with grandmother sharing first. She was the oldest of all the Sisters, and many of the young Sisters did not know her name, because everyone had called her grandmother for years. Which is the way it should be. In a few years she will become an elder, and then they will need to learn her name. But then it will be new and fresh to them, easier to remember. She shared what she has experienced since her last Bonding Ceremony. By the time Diennu and Ludia had their opportunity to share, they understood that they were allowed to share the same experiences, they just had to share it from their heart. So the Sisters knew how it affected them.

When it was Krillgan's turn. (Mother had kept him for last.) She asked if he would share how it happened that he could heal by touch, because he wasn't born with it. The Sisters encouraged him to tell them, because only a handful knew his story. Mother was very pleased at how well this Bonding Ceremony went.

Andriel and Chitrah were sipping tea, waiting up for Krillgan. They asked him how the Bonding Ceremony went. His face went dark, so they knew he was embarrassed, he also did not know how much of the ceremony he was allowed to share. He told them that the Sisters were nice to him. That the Clan Mother encouraged the three of them. He was happy that Diennu and Ludia, stayed close to him, it made him feel more comfortable, and they asked him to share how it happened that he could heal by touching.

Andriel and Chitrah were happy with their son's response. They had both decided, that now that Krillgan knew what a naked adult female looked like, it was important to have Chitrah start teaching him the traditions. They would begin tomorrow morning. That evening they gave him a cup of tea, and asked him how the rest of his day went. Krillgan enjoyed telling his parents, what he and Diennu, and Ludia, did through the day, because he got to enjoy it again, all over.

The next morning at breakfast, Krillgan told Ludia, and Diennu that he would not be able to go with them in the mornings, because father was going to start teaching him their traditions. They asked him, what traditions were? He told them that this is where he finally gets to learn about all those things they would not tell them when they were younger, like sex and stuff. Ludia and Diennu asked, if this was because he had been to a Bonding Ceremony? Krillgan told him that he thinks so.

After breakfast, the two girls ran to their mothers, who they knew were together, and asked them when they would start teaching them their traditions, because they have been to a Bonding Ceremony, just like Krillgan. They asked the girls, what were they talking about? They told them that because Krillgan was at the Bonding Ceremony last night, father was going to start teaching him their traditions. The mothers asked their girls, what are traditions? The girls said that they did not know, because no one had taught them yet. Both girls had their arms crossed because they thought their mothers were holding out on them. So the mothers, with their girls in tow, went to find Mother Andriel to see if she can enlighten them.

They told Mother Andriel that their girls are under the impression that they should be taught traditions now, because they have been to a Bonding Ceremony, only they don't know what they are. Andriel was able to figure out what was going on. She asked the girls if this is because Father Chitrah was starting to teach Krillgan his traditions. The girls both nodded yes. Andriel asked the women if they have any traditions to teach the girls about relationships and motherhood, the wedding night, and sex. The mothers looked at each other. They admitted that they don't have traditions about those things. Usually the only time anyone talks about that stuff is just before a wedding. Andriel was shocked. How did they expect the girls to have a good understanding of what a good relationship is? How will they know the difference between appropriate and inappropriate behaviour? That's like sending someone in to a fight with a blindfold on, and telling them to keep their eyes open. The mothers said that people just seem to learn those things. Andriel said that they are probably learning from their own mistakes, which can cause irreparable damage. They need to learn from the mistakes of those that have lived before them, so they don't repeat them, and destroy the person they love.

Both mothers were thoroughly embarrassed. What Mother Andriel said made sense, and they would be the first to admit that they could have used some help, especially at the beginning of their marriages. They asked Mother Andriel if she could teach their daughters her traditions, especially if it would help keep them from making some of the mistakes they did. Andriel agreed, she could teach them her traditions while Father Chitrah taught Krillgan his traditions.

The girls were ecstatic. They sat themselves on the floor, at mother's feet in the Seamstress shop. The other seamstresses had been listening in on the conversation. As soon as the Clan Mother and her sister left. They approached Mother Andriel and asked them if their girls could also come learn from her. Andriel looked at the seamstresses, some of them are grandmothers. What girls could they be talking about? She told them to go get them. They would wait. It wasn't long before every eligible young lady in the village was coming into the Seamstress's shop, including some young Sisters.

Andriel quickly realised that they were not going to have enough room. She suggested that they go into the dining area. It was a good thing that her mother had taught her how to project her voice, so she could be heard at a clan meeting.

In a matter of days, every woman in the village was coming into the dining room in the mornings. To hear what Andriel was talking about. After each morning session, some of the older women would asked her advice concerning a relationship problem. Mother Andriel would always take them back to the Seamstress's shop and had an elder accompany them, in case it was something more serious than she could help with. Some of the women approached Father Chitrah, asking him if he could teach their young men his traditions like his wife was teaching the young ladies. He told the women that his clan teaches their traditions in a different manner than his wife's clan. In his clan, a father teaching his son the traditions, was a time of bonding, a time where they go from being just father and son, to being good friends. To have someone else come into that time, could destroy what they are trying to create. The women were sorry to hear that. He did tell them that if the fathers were interested, he could teach them in the evening after dinner, so that they could start teaching their sons. The women were agreeable, now they just had to convince their husbands.

The Clan Mother was quite surprised by how many people where interested in learning the traditions, especially the women. She talked to the elders about it. They had all started sitting in on Andriel's morning session, and a couple had started listening in on Chitrah's evening training sessions. They told Mother that the teaching was sound. It was something they should have started doing generations ago. They could have avoided many of the problems they encounter today. She asked them if this is something she should be doing as Clan Mother, or should they be following the traditions of Andriel's people, and have the elders do it. They told her that for the women, having an elder teach the girls when they reach the age of puberty, until they enter a lasting relationship was good. But for the men, Chitrah's way of having the fathers' teach their sons, was best. This was not a teaching that a boy reaching puberty, would want to be taught by an old woman. Mother accepted what the elders told her, she would let things be as they are right now. She even planned to sit it on a couple of sessions. Her Sisters told her it was worth it.

Traditions are not something that can be taught in one session, or a few days. It takes years, including repeating sessions. It is about respect, and love. About appreciating, and being appreciated. About arguing, and not killing your partner in the process. Knowing that other people see things differently than the way you do, and that their way can also be a right way. It's about taking the time to listen, and not be quick to jump to conclusions. It's about how sex is a tool to help build a relationship, but can also be used as a weapon. It is about how relationships are built, they don't just happen. It takes years to build a good relationship. It only takes seconds to destroy it.

Life changed for the three in other ways. They found they had less time to play together because they were being trained in other ways. Amblin-Elu and Butashe had the responsibility of teaching them to read and write basic. After they showed they were proficient in this, they would then be taught the Kwa symbols, and their various meanings. Their textbook, the clan's book of Knowledge and Wisdom. Once they learnt to read basic, this book became much more interesting. They found the entire history of the clan was in the book. Ludia and Diennu read out loud the stories they were taught as little girls, only there was more detail. They better understood some of the stories, thanks to the things they learnt from the traditions.

They came across one story that involved Ludia's mother when she was Kreen's age. It was Krillgan's turn to read, so the two girl's had to be patient while he read it to them.

Krillgan had often wondered why the Nightsisters never made copies of the silk flags the Sister's wore, when they were on patrol, or when they went to town. The flags were visual symbols of the Sister that was wearing it. They were also used to help with transmission of messages. If a Sister felt she needed to watch a situation, but not approach until she had sufficient support. She would hand one of her flags to a militia member and send them off with a message. The first Sister to encounter the militia member knew right away that the militia member was speaking in the Sister's name. She had to decide whether to help the Sister and send the Militia member to find more backup. Or to take the message herself and run with it. Because she could deliver the message faster. It would take very little effort on the Nightsisters part to destabilise the clan's communication system. He and father were always talking strategy when they were playing Hutt Wars. He remember asking his father about it. His father told him that it is a simple strategy that could generate confusion, but was useless on its own, it had to be done in conjunction with another tactic with a specific goal in mind. He also explained that the Nightsisters would have trouble getting a hold of the spider silk, because there are only three clans that produce it, and none of them would ever trade it to the Nightsisters, no matter what they were offered. The Nightsisters would have to steal it to get it. Chitrah was sure that there was an agreement among the clans, that if spider silk was stolen, the Singing Mountain Clan needed to be notified, because they would be the obvious target.

In this history, the Nightsisters had stolen some spider silk, but only enough to make three flags. The Singing Mountain Clan responded by not allowing any single patrols. That way if a message was sent, the militia member would be carrying two flags from two different Sisters. The Nightsisters had come up with a plan to humiliate the Singing Mountain Clan, by embarrassing the daughter of the Clan's Mother. They had a Nightsister that they thought looked like Amblin-Elu. So they made up three flags with her colours and symbols. They thought that their impersonator could ride up to the gate and be let through, then ride on to town creating havoc in Amblin-Elu's name. What the Nightsisters did not know was than Amblin-Elu was one of the Sisters sent to guard the gate. So when the imposter came up to the gate. The other Sister asked her to wait at the first landing on the trail down from the gate, and someone would come down to verify her flags. The first landing was within bow shot range for the militia. Amblin-Elu swapped her two outside message flags with her Sister so that the militia would know who was who. She had a simple plan. She had a huge upland Rancor. The imposter was on a swamp Rancor. She would get her Rancor to hold the swamp Rancor, and turn them. So the Nightsister would have her back to the gate. She would be engaging the Nightsister in combat, while the militia made a pincushion out of her back, including her arms and legs. The militia was not supposed to shoot, until she had given them the signal. She hoped to get the Nightsister to start bragging about what it was she was planning to do, as her. When the gate opened, and Amblin-Elu came through it. The Nightsister knew that she had been made. She had no choice but to face the real Amblin-Elu and fight. Her Rancor could not outrun the Rancor that the real Amblin-Elu was riding. Amblin-Elu's Rancor did as instructed, rather than fight the little Rancor, it seized its arms to keep it from fighting. Than it slowly turned the Rancor until its back was to the gate. Amblin-Elu pretended to be a poor fighter, to let the Nightsister think she could win. She even allowed the Nightsister to cut her left arm at the bicep. The Nightsister started to boast about what she would do once she defeated her. They knew she was a virgin, and was supposed to be a virgin when she married, in order to later become the new Clan Mother, when her mother perished. So she was instructed by her Nightsister Mother to go to the town, pretending to be her. She was to seduce as many men as she could, and failing that, she would rape a few.

The girls made Krillgan stop there, they knew from what they were taught in the traditions, that women could be raped, but they had never heard of men being raped. (They had forgotten a lot of what they heard when the former slaves of the Nightsisters shared what it was like to live as a slave, because they did not understand it.) They asked their mothers about that. Amblin-Elu spoke for both of them. "When you use sex as a weapon, than anyone can be hurt by it. It would be very easy for a Nightsister to overpower a man. It would be harder to force the man to have sex with her. Most men's horns of manhood will not get hard in a situation like that. She would have to do something, whether it was to force him to drink a potion, or stimulate him in some way to make his horn hard. Usually it would require some combination. But the end result is, that she would be forcing him to have sex with her, and that is rape."

The girls asked Krillgan to continue. When Amblin-Elu knew what her plan was supposed to be. She signalled the militia, and started fighting properly. The Nightsister knew that she was in trouble, when Amblin-Elu cut open her right cheek, and kept her engaged so that she could neither move, nor defend herself against the arrows that were penetrating her back. When Amblin-Elu was satisfied, she smacked the Nightsister in the face with the butt end of her fighting stick. Breaking her nose and knocking her out. Amblin-Elu found the potion, that she was planning to give to the men that she seduced or raped. She knew that the potion has a different effect on women than it does on men. There were also medicinal plants growing near the gate, but she did not know what they were or what they did. She picked some and crushed their leaves into the potion.

The oil from the leaves did react with the potion. She made the Nightsister swallow the new concoction. She then stripped her of all her clothing. The swamp Rancor was told that if he attempted to move, her Rancor had permission to disembowel it and eat it.

After having removed all her clothing, Amblin-Elu took the Rancor dung that the Swamp Rancor had so generously provided, and rubbed it into all the wounds that the Nightsister had. She tied the naked Nightsister to her Rancor, so that her raw back would be rubbing against the Rancor's rough hide. To secure her, she had to tie the Nightsister with her arms and legs spread apart, or she would have fallen off. She did not think it was possible to humiliate a Nightsister sexually more than she had already humiliated herself. She probably would have been proud to display everything she had to the world.

The Nightsister started to come around, by the time she was secured. The strange potion had made her incoherent, with little control of her physical body. But she could feel pain. The swamp Rancor was instructed to walk past both villages before proceeding to the Glass Mountain, and was let go.

After Krillgan finished reading. Everyone looked at the Clan Mother.

"Mother, how could you do such a thing?"

Amblin-Elu told her daughter that it was easy. She had to remember that the Nightsister wanted to shame her and embarrass the clan. She wanted the men in the town to believe that they had either slept with or been raped by the daughter of the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan. They would of course tell all the other clans, before it could be proven that their claims were false.

By rubbing Rancor dung in her wounds, there was a good chance that her wounds would become infected before she reached the Glass Mountain. Because they have no healer. The only way they could stop the infection was by cauterising all her wounds.

The children wanted to know, what cauterising meant. She told them that they would have to take a piece of metal, usually a sword, knife or dagger. Then heat it until the tip is red hot. Then touch the tip to the wound after it has been washed clean, to kill any infection in the wound. It would be extremely painful, and permanently scar her for life, including the gash on her cheek. It would be impossible for that Nightsister to try and impersonate her again. It was also intended as a warning to the next Nightsister that might try it.

Amblin-Elu told them that they found out from the slaves living in their main village, that a Nightsister happened to be in their village when the Swamp Rancor came by with the naked Nightsister on his back. "She stopped him from continuing on to the Glass Mountain. She told them that if their Mother had seen her like that, she would have killed her on the spot. She cut her down off the Rancor, and had the village women wash her carefully. She had them make a hotter than normal fire in their bread oven, and stuck the tips of two daggers in the oven. The whole village could hear her scream every time the Nightsister touched a wound with one of her daggers. None of the village felt any pity for her. She was one of the Nightsisters who was involved in the rape of the village women. The Nightsister told them before she left that they were responsible for washing her and feeding her, until she was well enough to make it back to the mountain on her own. If she did not survive, the Nightsister pointed to three children. She would come back to take them to the Glass Mountain to live there permanently as their household slaves. We gave the villagers a salve that they could put on the heat scarred wounds, to keep them from becoming re-infected."

Ludia asked her mother why none of that was written in the book, because the way it is written now, she looks like a monster. Mother told her that what gets written and what doesn't get written, is up to the Clan Mother at the time, and the elders. She does not have the authority to go back and rewrite it, so that she looks better. The children were actually surprised. They thought the Clan Mother had the authority to do almost anything.

They had read a story earlier about two young Sisters fighting over a young man. The young man told them that he does not want to be shared by them. He had told each one secretly that she was the woman for him. A Bonding Ceremony was coming up, and the Clan Mother had to try and get this resolved before the ceremony. She went to go speak to the young man in question. To see if this issue could get resolved. She saw the young man, talking to a group of young men. She made herself invisible, and approached them to hear what they were talking about. She heard the young man boast about how he has both young ladies wrapped around his finger, they will do anything for him. They had both already surrendered their virginity to him. The ironic thing was that he did not really like either one of them, they were too gullible.

The Clan Mother was furious when she heard all this. She went back to her home and grabbed her sword. She did not bother making herself invisible the next time she approached the group, they saw anger written all over her face. She grabbed the young man by the force and lifted him up in the air telling him that he deserved to die. He told her that she made him do it. The Clan Mother asked him who made him do it. The young man said he did not know, he had never met her. She talks to him by crows and lizards, and promises him all sorts of wonderful things, if he will only do as she says. The Clan Mother ran him through with the sword. As he was dying she spoke to him.

"You fool. It was a Nightsister talking to you. The only thing she was going to do to you, was to make you her sex slave. I just did you a big favour, by killing you before she actually got her claws into you."

The Clan Mother cancelled the next Bonding Ceremony. She had the young man's companions tell the two young Sisters everything the young man said about them. The Clan Mother thought they would not believe her if she told them herself. She declared a month of morning, because the innocence of their clan had been violated. She let the young man's family say goodbye to him, but would not allow them to cremate him. Saying his body was tainted and had to be thrown into the ocean, as if he was a Nightsister. The two young Sisters were so angry and upset, that they went through the whole area around the village, killing every crow and lizard they found. They became the best of friends because of this, and were able to find a young man that wanted to be with both of them. In the girl's eyes, the Clan Mother was able to murder someone for the sake of the clan.

They asked Mother about that. Amblin-Elu first corrected them. What the Clan Mother did was not murder, she had executed a judgement. As Sisters they will be required to execute judgements, but on a much smaller scale. They have to look at a situation, and evaluate what is right and what is wrong, then determine what is fair and best for the clan, and execute it. The young man was on the verge of tearing the clan apart, just for his own amusement. Amblin-Elu believes that the punishment he received was fair for the damage he had done.

Krillgan also agreed, he told the girls that if the Clan Mother had not done what she did, and only kicked the young man out of the clan. It was possible that he could have helped the Nightsister recruit the two young Sisters, making Nightsisters out of them. The two girls shivered at that thought.

Amblin-Elu than told them that she cannot rewrite anything in the book without approval from the elders, in case it shows disrespect for the person who first wrote it into the book. She told them that if they look at the story again, they will see that grandmother did include all the facts. She was also conscience that this was her daughter that she was writing about. She did not want to colour it in, in case other Sisters reading it, felt that she was showing her daughter favouritism. Since every Sister has the right to read the book.

The two girls asked their mothers if grandmother was a nice person. The two sisters looked at each other. Amblin-Elu let her sister know that she has her permission in answering this question. Krillgan noticed that they were both holding hands. Butashe told the girls that their grandmother was a very fair Clan Mother, well respected by all the clans. At home she always let them know that she loved them, and was proud to see them becoming the women they were. She looked at her sister with tears in her eyes, "and we both loved her very much." The girls asked why they don't talk about her more often. Both mothers reached out and touched their daughters, "We should, shouldn't we." Both girls nodded their heads. Amblin-Elu started by saying that you know she was a powerful force user, by the fact that both of her daughters are also force users. Normally it is only the first born. They both started sharing stories from their childhood.

They had forgotten that Krillgan was still there. He knew that this was a special mother–daughter time, so he got up and made them all a cup of tea. After that he went home, he would have loved to stay and hear the stories. But it was probably best if the girls shared it with him afterwards.

It was Ludia's turn to read the histories. But when she saw the hand writing she guessed what it was about, and passed it to Diennu. After one quick look, it was passed to Krillgan. He asked the girls why they both passed on reading. They could both read better than him. Ludia asked him, if he recognised the handwriting? He said it looked familiar, but he could not say who wrote it. Ludia told him that it is her mother's handwriting, this is where her telling of the clan's history begins. Which means that she must be writing about how grandmother passed away. Now Krillgan understood why they both passed on reading it out loud.

"The Nightsisters have one Dathomirite sword, they call it Soul Eater. No one knows how long they have had it, or what clan they stole it from." Krillgan was sure that the clan it was stolen from knew it was gone, they just were not willing to admit it to the others. "The sword is possessed, in that the Nightsisters had trapped a darkforce demon in the sword, many generations back. They say that the demon traps the souls of the people killed by the sword, and uses their force energy to make itself stronger. This in turn strengthens the person who controls the sword, giving them access to more dark force energy. The Nightsisters' Mother felt so much power when she held the sword, that she thought herself invincible. The Nightsisters had tried many schemes, to try and undermine the Singing Mountain Clan, but almost all of them were defeated by the Sisters of the Singing Mountain Clan. The Nightsisters' Mother felt that their Clan Mother was a big reason they had been consistently beaten. So in frustration she finally challenged the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan to a duel. The challenge was sent through the Council of Mothers, so the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan had no choice, but to accept. Even though everyone told her that she was being set up. She acknowledged that it was probably a setup, but the honour of her clan does not allow her to refuse. The rules were simple. On the day that the Clan Mother agreed to, they would meet at the bottom of the pass in front of the gate. They were only allowed to bring two Sisters with them. The Clan Mother set a date, but did not tell anyone in the Clan what that date was. On the date she had agreed to for the duel, she had sent both of her daughters to be far away from the gate. The two daughters suspected their mother might do that, so they had a Sister they trusted hide herself at the gate. So as soon as she saw the Clan Mother go through it, she was to come and find them. Everyone guarding the gate knew she was there, and why she was there. So they kept her presence hidden from their own Mother. When the Clan Mother reached the bottom of the pass, with the two Sisters she had chosen. The Nightsisters' Mother accompanied by two Nightsisters rode up to her on a Swamp Rancor. The Nightsisters' Mother told her that it could hardly be considered a fair duel, if they both fought from the back of Rancor with such a huge difference in height. The Clan Mother agreed, and told her that she was willing to fight her on foot. The Nightsisters' Mother suggested that the sandstone quarry would be the best place to have a foot dual. Without thinking, the Clan Mother agreed."

"The Nightsisters had started experimenting for a number of years, to try and mimic the Singing Mountain Clan's Ranger's ability to make themselves appear smaller than they were, by using the dark side of the force. They had placed a number of these Nightsisters at strategic points in the sandstone quarry, along with a number of archers. The Nightsisters were to use their new ability to mask their presence, and that of the archers. So that the Clan Mother and her two Sisters would not know they were walking into an ambush."

"When the Nightsisters' Mother thought she had the Clan Mother where she wanted her. She suddenly attacked with force lightning. A typical Nightsister move. The Clan Mother was ready and had surrounded herself with an air shield, as had her two Sisters. It was the Nightsister next to the two clan Sisters that ended up being hit by the force lightning attack. The Nightsisters that had been hiding, jumped to the aid of their wounded Nightsister to try and keep the clan Sisters from helping their Mother. One of the clan Sisters instructed the clan Rancor to attack. So they easily dispatched the three swamp Rancor and came over to help their bond Sisters."

"The Nightsisters' Mother was surprised at how skilled her opponent was. Not only was she able to maintain a great defence from her attacks, but she was also able to deflect the arrow attacks. Finally one arrow managed to graze the sword arm of the Clan Mother. It wasn't a deep enough cut to injure the arm muscle, but it was deep enough to deposit some poison. The Clan Mother was grateful that it did not graze her left arm, which would have placed the poison closer to her heart. It did slow her arm movement down enough that she was grazed in her left leg by a poison tipped arrow, hindering her movement. By this time the archers had run out of arrows, so they all ran away."

"The Nightsisters' Mother felt that she now had enough of an advantage that she could now break through the Clan Mother's defence, and give her a death blow. Amblin-Elu was the first daughter to arrive at the top of the escarpment, overlooking the quarry. She saw the Nightsisters' Mother knock aside a slow sword defence by her mother, and impale her mother in the gut. The Clan Mother responded to the jubilant Nightsisters' Mother, by hitting her with force lightning. Momentarily stunning her, allowing the Clan Mother to plunge her sword into the heart of the Nightsisters' Mother. To make sure she was dead, the Clan Mother sent a blast of force lightning down the blade of her sword into her opponent's heart. Causing her to spasm, and to fall over backwards. The Clan Mother fell to her knees while her daughter raced down the small trail to her. Her other daughter showed up and started following her sister down the trail."

"When the Nightsisters saw that their Mother was dead, they launched a flurry of attacks, as if they were trying to get to her. What they were really after was the Soul Eater sword, which was still in the Clan Mother's belly. One of them grabbed it, and pulled it out. Than they all disappeared."

"When Amblin-Elu reached her mother, her mother asked her to forgive her for being selfish, and foolish. She told her daughter that she was the Clan Mother now, and that their Sisters need her. The Clan Mother put her right hand on her daughter's shoulder, "I don't want you being as good as me. I want you to be better than me, because you are." When Butashe arrived the Clan Mother put her right hand on her shoulder, "Your sister needs your strength now, just as she always has." With those words, the Clan Mother passed away."

When Krillgan finished, he looked up and saw that Ludia and Diennu were crying softly, holding each other's hands. Then he noticed that both their mothers also had tears in their eyes, and had an arm around each other. The girl's thanked Krillgan for reading it for them. Then they turned to their mothers.

"Does this mean that grandmother's soul is trapped in that sword?"

Amblin-Elu answered, "We know that part of her is trapped in that sword, but not as much as the Nightsisters would want us to believe. Or she would not have been able to appear to so many of us, warning us that we were being sent a healer."

Ludia and Diennu remembered that their mothers had snuck them into that special meeting, where the Sisters shared their dreams and visions about the coming healer. They were not supposed to be there, because they had not yet started their training. But none of the Sisters who knew that they were there complained. In fact they helped to keep their presence there a secret.

Butashe said, that it may be because the Nightsisters pulled the sword out of their mother's belly, before she passed away from the death blow. So only part of her soul was captured by the demon.

The next question was, how do they set her free? Mother told them that there was prophecy, at the same time as the visions and dreams, that soon a strong force user, skilled as a warrior, would come and claim Soul Eater as their own, setting all the souls free. The girls both looked at Krillgan. Mother warned the girls that the word soon in prophecy does not mean the same thing as if they were using it. Soon could mean 100 years from now. So it could be one of their children, or even grandchildren, that would have the honour of setting grandmother free.

Things were not smooth sailing for Krillgan. There were a couple of Bonding Ceremonies, where the horn of his manhood was obviously hard at the end. Kreen used those opportunities to complain to the other Sisters that he was not there to bond with them. He was there to ogle their bodies. Some of the Sisters teased him, asking which one of them had done this to him. He had noticed grandmother smiling at him. So he looked at the ground and said it was grandmother. This caused the Sisters to laugh. Grandmother said that the boy obviously appreciated a mature women. One of the Sisters asked her when she had last been with a man. Grandmother started to say, "Why just last month." The other Sisters asked her to stop. They did not want to hear about her sex life. They thought that she was going to say that she was with a man just last month. What she was going to say was that just last month, she had asked herself the same question. The truth was, that Krillgan was stimulated by the changes he could see happening in Ludia, and Diennu's bodies. They were also aroused by the changes happening in his body. Only nobody but their mothers noticed.

There was a young man in the village that was attracted to Kreen. He was slightly younger than Kreen. He had heard that Kreen did not like Krillgan, and thought he could make points with her by making fun of Krillgan. He thought it was a safe thing to do, because Krillgan could not defend himself. If he used the force on him, it would definitely look bad to the Sisters. Now Kreen actually liked Krillgan, she would have loved to have him as a younger brother. She just did not want him taking her place in the prophecy, and leave her feeling unimportant. This is why she had not bonded with him, and kept giving him a hard time at the Bonding Ceremonies. The young man started making fun of him, by saying things like, "So you want to be a sister. You don't want to grow up and be a man." The two boys that were with him would snicker.

One day Krillgan stood up to him. He told him that he felt sorry for him, because he did not know what he wanted to be. His two companions have already shown that they want to do their part in helping the clan. Krillgan knew that they were both apprentices. But the boy trying to make fun of him, had not selected any career.

"Right now you are doing nothing to help the clan, yet you expect the clan to look after you. You are not a baby, but you act like one. It's almost as if you're the one afraid of being a man."

The young man told Krillgan to take it back. Krillgan looked at him and told him that the truth hurts, doesn't it. The young man stepped towards Krillgan and told him to take it back or he'll.

"You'll do what, cry like a baby. Here is someone more your size."

Erin happened to be walking by. Krillgan knew that father had already started training him in the martial arts, and he was doing quite well.

"Erin, will you protect me from this bully?"

"Sure cousin, I'll protect you."

The young man took a kick at Erin, like he was some insignificant little thing. Erin easily avoided the kick, sweeping his other leg out from under him. The two guys that had been with him, laughed at him, because someone half his size was able to take him down so easily. They also liked what Krillgan said about them, how they were already contributing to the clan. It was hard work, but they liked it. But this guy was lazy. They did not want anything more to do with him. The young man thought that the whole world had watched this little kid make him fall flat on his behind. He believed that Krillgan had used the force to help his cousin. He would take care of this little guy when his cousin was not around to help him.

Ludia came up to Krillgan, and told him off. What he just did is very dangerous for Erin. Now that guy is going to want to get revenge. Diennu also agreed. Krillgan told them that they are right, and he was sorry. But he saw no other way out of that situation. Now he needs their help to keep an eye on Erin. To make sure that the guy does not ambush him. The girls told him that it was a good thing for him that they like him and his family. So they will do what they can to help Erin.

Now Kreen was wondering what the three of them were up to. She still considered them her children, and her responsibility. So she followed them following Erin.

A few days later, Diennu spotted the young man pick up a rock and sneak up behind Erin. To club him on the side of the head. Diennu used the force to tell Erin to duck. He moved his head just in time, and felt the air blow over it. He landed a double drop kick into the chest of his assailant, pushing him back. Then he got up and started yelling, "Help an older boy is attacking me." Just like his father taught him. The young man dove at Erin, wanting to grab him and silence him. Erin was able to avoid being tackled by him, and managed to land a chop to the back of his head. A Sister rushed over when she heard the call for help, and happened to see Erin strike the boy in the back of his head. She started scolding Erin for using his martial arts skills on the boy. But Kreen ran up and told the other Sister that Erin had done nothing wrong, he was only protecting himself. She described what really happened from the time the young man picked up the rock, until she had shown up to stop it. She even picked up the rock that he had tried to club Erin with. The other Sister went pale, a blow with this rock on a young boy's head could have killed him. This was attempted murder.

Kreen had told the other Sister that the reason she saw the whole thing, was because one of her friends had pointed the boy out to her a few days back.

When she saw him pick up the rock, she wondered what he was up to. The other Sister told Erin that he could go on his way, while she and Kreen literally dragged the boy before the Clan Mother. Kreen was visibly shaken when she found out that this all happened because of her. Because the boy thought she hated Krillgan.

The boy told Mother that he did not want to kill Erin, he only wanted to hurt him, because he humiliated him in front of his friends, and now they won't talk to him anymore. Mother told him that he humiliated himself with his foolish talk. That's why they won't talk to him anymore. They saw that Krillgan had pointed out the obvious. This made the young man feel even worse. Now she had to decide what to do with him. She let the two Sisters watch over him.

While she was gone, Kreen told the boy that she does not hate Krillgan, she actually likes Krillgan. Much more than she does him, and his foolish antics. The young man just wanted to find a rock he could crawl under and hide from the world. Mother went to all the trades' people to see if there was anyone who wanted to take the young man on. All of them said that he has no drive. He is useless to them. The only one who said they could use his help, was the lady in charge of the kitchen. She was also a close relative of his. She thought his parents were too soft on him, he needs to learn to appreciate the value of hard work. So Mother agreed to turn him over to her care. When she went back, to tell the young man his fate. She let him know that they would be watching him. If he did not show that he can help the clan, because of what he did, almost taking a boy's life, she would have no choice but to kick him out of the clan. This judgment scared the young man, and his parents. They would make sure that he was up first thing every morning, to do what he could, to help out in the kitchen.

Most of the Sisters had gathered at their special training area. The ones who had just received their new dance outfits from Mother Andriel had ridden their Rancor, because they did not want to damage them. They were all so excited, even their Clan Mother was there. The Sisters in their dance costumes were going to represent the Singing Mountain Clan at a special gathering at the Red Hills Clan. There were going to be dancers representing all of the Clans. This was the first invitational dance meeting. The Sisters wanted to show off how they looked in their new outfits when they danced, and the other Sisters all wanted to see.

The Sisters who would be dancing when their guests arrived, to go visit the Singing Mountains were a little jealous, because their costumes were not ready yet. The Clan Mother had told Mother Andriel that the dance outfits for the Sisters going to the Red Hills Clan meeting had first priority. Right in the middle of one of the dance routines, a Purbole shows up, and runs up to the Clan Mother, and falls on his knees before her. "Please protect us Great Mother. Some swamp Rancor have been chasing us all the way from the southern swamp. They want to eat us. If they find our nests we will all perish." Amblin-Elu knew that this was serious. The Purbole have paid her tribute every year, in nuts, since her daughter, niece, and Krillgan, first encountered them. Mother Andriel was able to make enough nutbutter for all the villages, to last most of the year. A lot of the children and a few of the adults have grown quite fond of it. The tribute was to keep Rancor away from them. Because the costumed dancers were the only ones there with Rancour. Mother ordered three of the dancers to take their Rancor up into the trees and intercept the Swamp Rancor, and turn them back. The dancers complained that they brought nothing to change into. Mother reminded them that they were intercepting Rancor not Nightsisters. The costumes might have more of an effect on them then their armour would. The dancers did as they were ordered. It took a lot of manoeuvring to get up into the trees without letting a stray branch touch the outfits. They would be devastated, if they accidentally scratched or tore their new outfits. The hardest part was not to lose any feathers. They can get brushed off so easily.

When they encountered the swamp Rancor, one of the Sisters asked them, what were they doing in Singing Mountain Clan territory? The two Rancor looked at each other. They told her that they were hunting. The Sister asked them if they had permission from her Mother to hunt in their territory. The Rancor admitted that they did not. The Sister than asked them, what were they hunting? They said that they were chasing Purbole that were eating fruit off of trees in the swamp. She asked them why they did not catch them when they had them in the swamp. Why come all the way into someone else's territory. The swamp Rancor said there were too many of them running in all directions, it took a while to find the trail of one and track it. The Sister told them it was too bad that they had their chance and lost it. Here the Purbole pay tribute to their Mother so that they do not get eaten. If they do not turn around and go back to their own territory, then they will be attacked and be eaten by their Rancor. The younger Rancor complained to the older Rancor that it was hungry. The older Rancor smacked it. "Better to be hungry than to be eaten" The older Rancor spoke to the Rancor the Sisters were riding, then turned and left. When they were sure the Rancor were leaving, they returned to the training area and reported to Mother. Letting her know that the two swamp Rancor are mother and son. Mother asked the Rancor what the swamp Rancor said to them. The Rancor told her, that she said that they must be proud to have such accomplished hunters ride them, "That wore trophies of their kills." The Rancor started laughing, and so did the Sisters.

Andriel had been sharing the traditions of the ceremony of the wedding night, and then started talking about the special foods they eat, to help them prolong that night. She had arranged with the kitchen staff to take over the kitchen after dinner, to show how to prepare the different dishes, and what the function of each dish was, so that they can tell their groom what to eat, because they both want that night to last as long as possible. She told them about the dishes that needed to be eaten right away, so that they don't get sick later. She let all the girls and the ladies that were present finish those dishes off. Now all the ladies from the village were present, because they knew that it was about special food preparation for weddings. Andriel told them that she keeps a supply of nuts hidden in the cave to be used on special occasions. She only let the girls taste small samples of the other dishes. At the end of her demonstration, Andriel took what was left over, to take home to share with Chitrah. Now the kitchen staff knew that Andriel prepared most of those dishes, once every twelve months. They had never asked her what they were for. They always assumed it was for some special ceremony that she and Father Chitrah conduct in their own home. Now they knew how special that ceremony was. The women all wanted to make some, and try it for themselves, to see if it really worked the way Mother Andriel said it would. They raided her secret stash of nuts, and made all the dishes that did not need special storage.

That night Krillgan took, Erin and Aliyanna for a sleepover with Diennu and Ludia, at Butashe's home. Butashe enjoyed hosting the children. She knew that Mother Andriel and Father Chitrah liked to have this one night alone, ever twelve months. Sometimes the children slept at her house, sometimes they went to the pirate ship and slept there. She knew that Erin preferred the pirate ship, because he always found something new he could take apart and put back together. Butashe preferred that they stay at her place, because Aliyanna would sleep with her. Ludia and Diennu, would share a bed, and Krillgan and Erin would sleep together. Butashe missed having Diennu sleep with her, because she said she was getting too old for that. So it was a special treat to have Aliyanna sleep with her. She did not feel lonely at night when the child was with her.

The next morning the Clan Mother is woken up by a loud knocking on her door. She knew it must be urgent if they are willing to risk waking her. When she opened the door, she found the young man she had assigned to work in the kitchen. He looked panicked. He told the Clan Mother that none of the kitchen staff had reported for work that morning. Soon the children would be up, and there would be no food for their breakfast. Amblin-Elu instructed him what homes he should go to, to wake an elder.

"Tell them this is an emergency."

Amblin-Elu went to wake the rest of the elders. She let him have the nice ones in the morning, she took the grouchy ones for herself. When she told them the situation, grumbling and complaining, they came to the kitchen. They knew it was already too late to try and start baking bread for breakfast, but they would need to bake some anyway for lunch. So they needed flour. They asked the young man where the grinding stones were. He told them that they don't make flour by hand anymore, they make it all in the mill. Another elder suggested they make porridge, it was always nice to have in the mourning. They asked the young man where the large mortar was kept to pound the grain for porridge. He told them that they use the mechanical pounder to flatten the grain for making porridge. The elders took one look at the contraption, and told him never mind, they will find the old mortar themselves. One of the elders lifted a sack of grain, and asked the young man to lead the way to the mill. The young man stared at her. She just threw that sack of grain over her shoulder like it was nothing. It normally takes two grown men to lift it, and they put it on a hand cart to take it to the mill. The elder snapped her fingers in front of his face.

"Lead the way son, this grain is not going to grind itself."

He led the way to the mill, checking that she did not fall over on the way. Now he had never operated the mill by himself, but he had seen it done a number of times. He hoped he remembered what to do. He instructed the elder to place the grain in the feeding hopper. He engaged the lever that started the upper millstone to rotate. He instructed the elder to place the fine cloth sack inside the grain sack she just emptied, so that they can use it to catch the flour as it exits out of the lower hopper. When the sack was in place, he opened the upper hopper to start feeding the grain. Soon flour started to fill the sack. When no more flour came out of the exit hopper, he disengaged the upper mill stone so it ground to a halt, and he closed the upper hopper. The elder said she could have made it faster herself. She forgot to close the sack before picking it up, so when she grabbed it, she ended up covering herself in a cloud of flour. The young man tried really hard not to laugh. He even had tears coming out of his eyes. The elder looked at him, "I've made a proper mess of myself, haven't I."

All he could do was nod his head.

"I'm so pale, maybe the others won't notice."

Now he could not help but laugh, and so did she. She grabbed the sack of flour by its mouth keeping it closed. She told him that she would meet him in the kitchen, she was going to take a shortcut. She jumped over the stream rather than walking all the way down to the bridge. The other elders had a good laugh when she showed up. The elder that wanted to make porridge, found the large mortar and the pestle for pounding the grain. She had flatten enough grain to start making porridge, but not without the other elders telling her not to pound so hard, because she might break it. Then they would have to use Father Chitrah's machine. Two elders decided to make dumplings, using the flour that the elder just brought back from the mill. One would make them, and then cook the dumplings in boiling water. The other wanted to make a sauce from honey, berries, and new ale, to go with them. The elder that was covered in flour decided to make flat bread. People can either pour some of the honey berry sauce on them, or they can wrap it around sliced meats and cheese. Amblin-Elu decided to start preparing the bread for lunch. They told the young man to put a large container on the stove to boil water for tea. Then to fetch some cooked meats and cheese so that they can slice it up.

Whenever they needed something, they would ask the young man where it is. He learnt not to go get it, just to point it out, then duck if he was between the item and the elder. The food was ready by the time the children started showing up. But it was not what they normally have, and it was in big pots, not in bowls like they normally have it. They were reluctant to try it, even though they were hungry. Than Krillgan, Ludia, Diennu, Erin, Aliyanna and Butashe showed up. Butashe started putting porridge into bowls for the little children. Then putting some syrup on top. She warned them that it was very hot. She told them to stir the syrup into the porridge first to sweeten it. It was okay to blow on the spoon if it was too hot. Krillgan wanted to try the dumplings with the syrup on them. When he said that it tasted good, other children were willing to try it. Ludia and Diennu tried the sliced meat and cheese wrapped in the flat bread. The elder had to make more syrup, because the children were putting it on almost everything. Krillgan took the big pot of tea, and took it up to the temple, placing the pot in the ice cold water to cool it down so it would be comfortable for the children to drink. The children even put some hot syrup into the warm tea to sweeten it, and give it a berry flavour. All the children were able to find something to eat that they liked, and were able to fill their bellies before going out to play. After they were done, the older children started coming in, the ones between eight and thirteen. They would be called teenagers on other planets, because of the difference in the length of a year. Around mid-morning when the elders had started cleaning up. The adults started coming in, the women where giggling like young girls, when they compared their experience from last night with their neighbours. They were all in a good mood, until they saw the angry looks on the elders' faces. The adults who were supposed to be working in the kitchen that morning turned bright red when they realised what they had done.

The Clan Mother wanted an explanation, on why no one but the young man had shown up to work in the kitchen. The lady in charge of the kitchen asked if he knocked on their doors. He told them that he pounded on all their doors but no one responded. The one man whispered to his wife, "I told you I thought I heard someone pounding on our door, but you said to ignore it, and it will go away."

The young man said that out of frustration and concern, he went and knocked on the Clan Mother's door. Then the two of them woke up the elders. The lady in charge of the kitchen, told the Clan Mother that Mother Andriel had made a special food presentation after dinner as part of her teaching on her traditions. "We have seen her make the dishes a few times before, but last night she explained the purpose of the various dishes. They were dishes that a bride to be, would make in preparation of her wedding night, for her and the groom to consume at certain intervals through the night. So that they would have more energy through the night, and be able to prolong their experience together. We all wanted to try it, to see if it really worked, if you eat the foods in the order she suggested. Well it worked better than any of them expected. They probably fell asleep when they should have been getting up." The Clan Mother was furious, she told them that they all acted like immature children. She forbade them from making the foods from Mother Andriel's traditions, except for feast days, and weddings, when proper arrangements can be made so that the little ones do not go hungry. They narrowly avoided a major disaster this morning. If it wasn't for the young man working in the kitchen, the children would still be waiting for their breakfast.

One of the adults asked, what about Mother Andriel making her dishes? The Clan Mother said that obviously she knows how to be responsible. As you mentioned, she has been making these dishes for a long time, and there has never been a problem. She has also made arrangements for her children to be looked after. Her children had a sleepover at Aunt Butashe's home, along with Ludia, and Krillgan. There is no need for this ban to apply to her or Father Chitrah.

The adults were downcast, they had a good thing, and they abused it. They told the Clan Mother that they would abide by her wishes. When the other villages heard about this ban, they wanted to know, what these dishes were, and why they were banned. When they were told it was part of Mother Andriel, and Father Chitrah's traditions, the heads of the villages had to inquire what these traditions were. Then they asked why this was not being taught in their villages. The elders had to approach Chitrah to get his permission to sit in on his sessions for the fathers, so that they could learn them, and teach the fathers in the other villages. They also told Andriel that they were going to start teaching her traditions to the girls and women of the other villages. Except for the cooking part, when they were ready, she would need to come out and teach them. Andriel told them that the traditions are taught and re-taught. A girl can be taught them about four or five times before she actually marries. It ended up, after discussing it with the Clan Mother that an elder ended up moving to each of the villages. So that she could carry on with the continuous teaching. It was also arranged with Chitrah, that he and Krillgan would have to go to each of the villages, to teach the massage part of his traditions.

One time when Krillgan took Erin and Aliyanna, to the pirate ship by Rancor cart. They found out that Aliyanna, was a beastmaster. Because all the beastmasters where in the farming villages, and Andriel was not willing to send her little girl to another village. Krillgan was given the responsibility of making sure that she was communicating properly with the Rancor. Amblin-Elu hoped that eventually she would be one of the regular members of the caravan crew.

One morning Ludia and Diennu were surprised when Krillgan did not join them for breakfast. He always showed up, even if it was just to say he would not be joining them. After breakfast they went to the cobbler's shop. They found Father Chitrah, but no Krillgan. When they asked father about him. He said that he thought Krillgan was with them. He had hoped that they could have the morning to talk about the traditions, but when he left the house early, he assumed that he had something important to do with them. He asked them, that when they found him, to let him know that he would like to talk to him. He rightly assumed that they would keep looking. He told them that there was no anniversaries or birthdays coming up, so he would not have snuck off to make anything. With a twinkle in his eye, he said that Krillgan only had three girlfriends, and two of them were looking for him. They both were embarrassed because he knew he was talking about them.

"Father Chitrah, you know that we are only good friends. (Pause) Wait a minute, who's the third girlfriend?"

"Rasha of course. But she is not due back with her father for another couple of months."

They felt better when he said Rasha. She was a good friend. The adults let them postpone their commitments until after she left with her father. So the three of them could spend all their time with her.

When father first mentioned a third girlfriend, they wondered whether a non-force user village girl had caught his eye. For a moment, they both felt jealous. They knew that father liked to tease them. So they each gave him a kiss on his cheek, so the other cobblers watching, would tease him back for them.

They checked all of their usual hangouts, he wasn't there. For some reason, Ludia thought that they should check the woods where they slept when they had that challenge from Mother. None of them had been there since. There was Krillgan, sitting right where they had slept. Knees up, elbows on his knees, face in his hands. They think they heard him crying. They came up to him, telling him that they looked all over the place for him, and father wants to talk to him. He did not even look at them, he told them to leave him alone. He also told Ludia to tell her Mother that he won't be coming to the Bonding Ceremony tonight. The girls knew that this is serious. They both left Krillgan, and ran to Mother. They told her all that happened, including Krillgan not even looking at them. Mother asked them if any of the village boys were teasing him, like they did before. They both told her no, he would have told them something like that. She asked if they saw any crows or other scavenger creatures, around him. They told her they did not notice, but they also did not look. Krillgan was always better at spotting creatures then they were. Mother asked them where exactly they found Krillgan. Then she told them not to follow her.

They didn't, they went straight to Father Chitrah. They got him out of the cobbler's shop. Then told him they found Krillgan, and the reception he gave them. They also told him that Mother was on her way to talk with him. He asked them if they could take him to Krillgan. They told him that they were worried that he would never ask. When they approached the woods, Chitrah told them that it would probably be best if they did not come into the woods with him. He may need to speak to Krillgan privately. Now they brought him here so that he could help them find out what was going on. But if it would help Krillgan, if father talked with him alone, they would want that.

When Mother found Krillgan. She went and sat down beside him. She told him that she had heard that he did not want to come to the Bonding Ceremony. He must have quite a good reason, if he was going to miss the Bonding Ceremony. He had to tell her what it is. Krillgan told her that it was very personal, and very embarrassing. Mother told him that that did not matter. As Clan Mother she was required to hear it. Krillgan asked her to lean towards him. He was even too embarrassed to say it out loud. When Mother heard what he had to say, she wanted to start laughing, and she wanted to hug him. She did neither, she knew that they would both hurt him. She did tell him that it was not a good enough reason for him to miss a Bonding Ceremony. The Ceremony is about accepting each other just the way they are, no matter what is happening to them.

Krillgan was upset, "They will all laugh at me."

Mother admitted that they might, this is not a condition that most women are familiar with. But if they do laugh it is not because they want to hurt him. It is because they don't know how to react. They still will be willing to accept him.

"But Kreen won't. I doesn't understand why she stopped liking me?"

Mother assured Krillgan that Kreen still likes him. She just has some issues in her life that she has to deal with. Unfortunately his being in the Bonding Ceremony has forced her to have to deal with them.

"Just remember that she is still Kreen. We have to trust her to make the right choices."

Krillgan finally agreed to come. He can't hide forever. Mother had noticed that Chitrah had been standing a discreet distance away from them, allowing them to talk in private. Mother asked him if it was okay for her to tell his father what is wrong, he is waiting in the woods to talk to him. Krillgan told her it was okay for her to tell him, he wasn't going to run away. Mother was glad to hear that he still had a sense of humour. She patted him on the shoulder when she got up, to try and give him some reassurance.

She told Chitrah what was wrong with him. Chitrah told her that the same thing happened to him when he was Krillgan's age. His father helped him deal with it, so no one else in his family knew. Mother was happy that at least Chitrah knew how to try and help his son. Chitrah went and sat down beside his son. He put his left arm around him and drew him close to him. He told his son that it was okay to cry. So Krillgan, cried on his father's chest. He asked his father why this had to happen to him, on a Bonding Ceremony day. Chitrah told him that he did not know why. Things were much easier for him, when it happened to him. Krillgan asked him to tell him about it. He told him that his father noticed, he had come down before breakfast, and was already working at his workbench.

"Something similar must have happened to him. Because he brought his breakfast over to my workbench, and shared it with me. He told me not to worry, just to do a good job with the work that was given me. My brother noticed that Father was getting up and getting things for himself, that I as the youngest apprentice, would normally be required to get. He got angry with me and told me to stop being so lazy and get up and get father's stuff. Father spoke sternly to him. "Achram! This is still my workshop not yours. If I chose to get up and get something for myself that is no concern of yours. Do not presume to do my job for me. When this is your workshop, then you can order around your apprentices however you choose." Achram apologised to father. He was actually surprised that father stood up for me. Father kept bringing over stuff for me to do, and taking away the stuff I had finished. When lunch came, father told mother that I was excused from coming to lunch, because I had too much work to do. With everyone else in the kitchen, it was a good time for me to take a bathroom break, without anyone seeing me. I had been holding it for most of the morning. When I went back to my workbench, I found that mother had left my lunch there for me. I don't know if father secretly asked her, or if she did it on her own. I was famished, because I had only shared father's breakfast that morning. I ate it as quickly as I could. The plate was empty when mother came back for it, and I was able to thank her. Just before dinner time, my father came and piled a whole bunch more work on my workbench, and told Achram that I would not be joining them for dinner. Now Achram was confused, he wondered if father was punishing me for something he did not know about. After they finished dinner. Father told Achram that they should leave me alone in the workshop. They should go upstairs to relax. After they left the kitchen, Mother brought me my dinner and asked me if everything was alright between me and father. I told her that father has been looking out for me all day. Not to worry. She sat with me as I ate. She told me that sometimes she does not understand what my father was doing. I told her that when I grow up, I hope I can be as nice to my son, as he is to me." With that he pulled out a porridge cake, since he knew that Krillgan had missed breakfast, and it was already after lunch. He apologised to Krillgan that he wasn't able to bring him something to drink. He asked him if there was a nice stream nearby, where he could go get him some fresh water. Krillgan told him where he could find a stream.

When Mother left the woods she asked the two girls to accompany her back to the village. They need to leave Father Chitrah and Krillgan alone for now. They asked her if Krillgan was going to be alright. She told them that she expected he would be. They asked her what is wrong with him. She told them they would find out when Krillgan comes to the Bonding Ceremony tonight. The girls felt better knowing that Krillgan would be coming to the Bonding Ceremony. Now they were very curious about what was wrong with him.

They found Krillgan in the anti-chamber to the temple, where they undress and leave their clothes until after the ceremony. He was just sitting on a bench fully clothed, leaning forward. He told them that Mother had promised to get him, when it was time to go in. They studied his face very closely, and could not see any blemishes, so they knew that that was not the problem.

When the time to start the meeting came, Mother came and got him. He followed Mother into the temple, and the Sisters noticed that he was actually hiding behind her. She called for everyone's attention. She told them that they have a Sister that has encountered a problem that no Sister has ever encountered before.

"Krillgan is so embarrassed that he did not want to come to our Bonding Ceremony. I had to remind him that we are obliged to accept everyone just as they are, no matter how embarrassing it may seem. I was surprised to find that Krillgan's problem is more common than I thought, amongst young men going through puberty. The horn of his manhood has been hard all day."

She made Krillgan stop hiding behind her. He came out and stood beside Mother. Ludia and Diennu had to put their hands to their mouths to stop themselves from giggling. Mother assured everyone that this was not a permanent condition. He should be back to normal soon. One of the Sisters commented that she knew some men that wished they had that problem. Another Sister replied, "Don't you mean that you wish your lover had that problem." This caused most of the Sisters to laugh, except the first Sister who turned quite red. Even Mother smiled as she tried to bring order back to the assembled Sisters. She reminded them that discussing their love life was not part of the Bonding Ceremony. Then she told Krillgan to go stand by Ludia and Diennu like he normally does. Krillgan again tried being careful, not to touch anyone as he made his way through the crowd. He was a little surprised by how many Sisters reached out and touched his shoulders as he went by, just to reassure him.

Mother was pleased with how well the Bonding Ceremony went despite its unusual beginning. When they went to the anti-chamber to dress, Kreen noticed that Krillgan's horn was no longer standing erect. She asked him what was wrong, don't her girls interest him anymore, and she started fondling her mountains. Which had the desired effect on Krillgan's horn. Many of the Sisters thought that Kreen had gone too far, and looked at Mother to discipline her. Before Mother could do anything. Krillgan went up to Kreen. Because he was shorter, as he was still growing, he put his head between her mountains, and hugged her. This move surprised everyone, especially Kreen. She later confessed to her close friends how erotic Krillgan's fur felt on her naked body. Kreen tapped him on his head and asked why he did that. He looked up at her face with tears in his eyes. So she knew that she hurt him, which made her feel bad.

"You are important to me, and I love you!"

Kreen finally realised that she did not need the prophecy to be important to people. She knew how Ludia, Diennu, and Krillgan looked up to her. She almost lost their respect with the way she was behaving. Even the Clan Mother had appointed her their instructor, before she knew about the prophecy.

"I'm sorry I hurt you Krillgan. I love you too little Sister."

Then she ruffled his hair, because she was afraid to hug him back. Everyone heard her call Krillgan little Sister. A term of affection that the older Sisters use when talking with younger Sisters to give them encouragement. It was like a dark cloud had suddenly been lifted off of the group.

After Krillgan turned to get his clothes. Kreen looked at her mother, who smiled back. Her heart skipped a beat, mother approved. Then she looked at her grandmother. She did not smile, she just nodded her head. Kreen could not remember if she ever saw her grandmother smile, but she knew that grandmother thought she did the right thing. When Krillgan came to where his clothes were, both Ludia and Diennu gave him a hug, they were so excited for him. Krillgan had a big smile on his face, and politely asked his two friends if they can save the hugging until after they were dressed. He did want his horn to go down at some time. This was their first indication, that their bodies affected him. They looked at each other and smiled. They always thought that Krillgan stood near them because he wasn't interested in their bodies, it was a safe place. Know they knew that this was not true. He stood near them for the same reason they stood near him. They felt comfortable being near each other, despite the tension they felt in their bodies, being so close. They were no longer little girls. Now they started to feel like women.

The Clan Mother waited until the next Bonding Ceremony to make sure that everyone was bonding. At the end of the ceremony, she told all the Sisters that they would have a special meeting the following day. She asked Krillgan that he not attend, because they will be talking about Mother Andriel and Father Chitrah, she wanted her Sisters to be able to speak freely, and there was a small chance he might be offended by what some of them might say or ask. She was trusting that Ludia and Diennu would be able to fill him in later, about the things they will be discussing.

"If you have any questions after that, I will be happy to talk with you, because we do not want to hide this from any Sister, especially you."

Krillgan was curious about what they would be discussing now, after they have been living with them for so long. He arranged with Ludia and Diennu where they would meet up after the meeting, so that they can tell him what was said about mother and father.

When he saw other Sisters but not Ludia and Diennu. He suspected that something might be wrong. He went up to the temple to see if they might be there. The temple looked empty, but he could hear crying in the anti-chamber. When he looked inside he could still make out Ludia and Diennu, because of his Chagrian vision, even though it was so dark. He entered and saw that they had been hugging each other. He asked them if everything was all right. They both made room so that he could sit between them. They both leaned against him, each holding an arm. Ludia told him that Mother finally shared her whole dream with them. When grandmother appeared to her and told her about the healer that was coming.

"Grandmother also told her about the two adults that were bringing the healer. That they were special. They have the Mother Spirit, and Father Spirit, of Dathomir in them. She had to make sure that no one from the clan harmed them in any way. Because if they were harmed, the Force would punish the clan. Mother told us how she came across an old recipe for a potion in the book of Knowledge and Wisdom. This potion was supposed to make alien species appear more human. She wanted Mother Andriel and Father Chitrah to blend in better to our community. So she ignored the advice of the elders and gave the potion to them anyway." Krillgan remembered that day very well. "Mother told us that by doing so she had caused Mother Andriel to lose her baby that she did not know she had. This brought their whole clan under a curse. She told all of us that it was her fault that our fathers are dead." Both of his friends put their heads on his shoulders and cried. "Then she told us she was very sorry. She let us come in here to cry. So we did not hear what they said in the rest of the meeting." Krillgan asked them if Mother was blaming mother and father. Ludia told him, "No way! They had forgiven her for giving them the potion. If they had known about the curse they would have tried anything to stop it, even though they couldn't. It was out of their hands." Krillgan asked them if they heard anything else. Diennu remembered, she said that mother and father cannot know anything about this, because they would feel extremely burdened about us, and would stop being mother and father to us. Nobody wants that, we all love them. We want them to be happy. Krillgan wanted them to be happy too. He asked them, why Mother waited until now to tell everyone? They said they did not know, they were in here crying. Krillgan suggested that they go see Mother. They told him that they were okay, and got up to go with him. As they were walking Krillgan asked them not to blame Mother, because she was trying to do what was best for everyone. Even he did not know that mother was pregnant. Ludia and Diennu knew that he was very good at knowing when mother was pregnant. He could sense it with other women too. He told them the details of the day that Mother gave the potion to mother and father. How it hurt them both, but especially mother. It was only when Mother saw how much mother was bleeding, that she realised that she had been pregnant. He told them how pale Mother became. She took off her cloak, so that no one could see mother bleed, and she sent one of the Sisters for the material women use when they go into their moon cycle. Both young ladies had experienced many moon cycles, and knew what Krillgan was talking about. Ludia and Diennu knew that Mother would not have hurt them intentionally. They also knew that she was a woman of action. So this was not the first time that she had done something without first thinking it through.

When they arrived at Mother's, they saw that Butashe was also there, and that her eyes were red from crying. She asked the two girls if they had forgiven Mother yet. They both nodded their heads, so she came over and hugged them both. Then Mother went and put some water on to boil for tea. After everyone was seated, she asked them how she could help them. Krillgan told her that Ludia and Diennu did not hear anything more of the meeting, after they went into the anti-chamber to cry. He was curious why she waited until now to tell everyone what had happened. Mother told him that she wanted to tell them, especially her sister. Maybe because she wanted her sister to beat her up, since she had caused the death of her husband, and left her daughter without a father. "I know that I wanted to beat me up. But I could not risk this knowledge affecting how the Sisters bonded with you. I needed to be sure everyone had actually bonded with you of their own free will first. Rather than them feeling that they had to. Which they now know that they did. Krillgan let that sink in before he asked the next question. He asked if there was anything else that they missed. Mother asked them what they had already shared with him. Mother looked at her sister and sighed. She told them that the only other information they had missed, was when one of the Sisters asked what would have happened if not everyone had bonded with him. "I told them that the elders and I had set a time limit. We knew that anyone who had not bonded with you by that time, had chosen not too. I would have had no choice at that point, but to kick them out of the clan. Because they had put themselves ahead of the clan, and would be a dangerous disruptive element. Which was not acceptable for a Sister of the clan." Krillgan asked her, how close were they, to reaching the time limit? She told him that she will give him the same answer she gave them. "Close! Very close!"

After this, their training changed, according to what area they would be specialising in. The Singing Mountain Clan is the only clan that breaks their Sisters into one of three categories. Rangers, Warriors, and Healers. All other clans have only two categories. Warriors and Healers, with some Warriors also classified as runners. Diennu because of her superior stealth capabilities was being trained as a Ranger, under direct supervision of her mother, who was in charge of all Rangers. Ludia was being trained as a Warrior, as had her mother. She would be training with Kreen, but not under Amblin-Elu. Even though she was considered the clan's best Warrior. There were a number of capable warriors that she would be training under. Her overall training would be supervised by the elder Hm-Shassa, who supervised the training of all Warriors, including Amblin-Elu. Krillgan would be training as a healer, under the supervision of Amblin-Elu. Even though she was trained as a Warrior, after she became Clan Mother, she asked to be trained as a healer as well, because she understood how important healers were to the whole clan. Even though it was harder for her to learn, since she had no natural skills. She persevered, and is considered one of the clan's better healers. More importantly, she is considered their best trainer for healers, because she can help healers in the areas where they are not naturally gifted.

Now they still needed to be trained in the four basic elements. Butashe was the top trainer for air. Amblin-Elu was the trainer for earth, because warriors also needed to know the sub category of rock, and she was the best in this category. There were no Sisters that were strong in water or fire, so whoever Hm-Shassa considered was available to teach it, would be the one to do it.

So the way their day was now structured. After breakfast Krillgan would go to Chitrah for instruction. Now Chitrah did not teach his sons just the traditions, but he also taught them mathematics. Chitrah taught geometry to all the apprentices, but he taught algebra and calculus only to his sons, along with physics. He taught Krillgan, because he believed at some point in his life he will need to leave Dathomir, for Kindell's prophecy to be completely fulfilled. Since he was a natural pilot, his knowledge of math could only help him. He taught Erin, because of his natural mechanical ability, and because he enjoyed helping Grimm and father with the maintenance and repair of the Fenelar Phoenix, whenever it was on Dathomir. Ludia and Diennu would go to mother for training in the traditions in the morning. She would also teach them in design, from armour to dance costumes. Because of her knowledge in Togruta dances and her self-defence training, she was also in demand to help the Sisters with their dance choreography. Something that Ludia and Diennu found that they also had to help with, because Andriel was poor at demonstrating what she was talking about, but they seemed to understand. In the afternoon they would be involved in the training of their discipline. The only time they would train together was when they were trying to master one of the four elements. After dinner they had their own time. They found that they would each share the knowledge of their discipline with their friends. They did not know that Mother and the elders were hoping that they would do this. This helped them reinforce their own training, as well as learning about the other disciplines. Ludia found that she needed Kreen to help her demonstrate some of the Warrior stuff she was learning. Krillgan found that mother was very helpful, when he was trying to share some of the stuff he had learnt. This was because Andriel had a strong chemistry background, which helped her with the use of dyes in clothing. Her knowledge of teas came from a strong interest in biology. Chemistry and Biology are two sciences that are important to healing sciences. So she was a big help to helping Krillgan understand what he had been taught, and to help him share it with Ludia and Diennu. If Diennu was having trouble sharing something, she could always count on her mother to help her. Because Andriel was so good at helping Krillgan learn. Mother would quite often invite her to join them if they were doing something that did not involve the force. Another thing that Krillgan learnt through his healing training, was not to be quick to put his hands on someone, without knowing first what was wrong. For instance if he touched someone with a compound fracture, that did not have the bones set properly. The bones would start healing in the wrong position. They would have to be re-broken, which can be very painful, then set properly, before he could touch them to heal them. Krillgan relied on the scanning feature of his father's computer, when he was not sure what he was seeing with the force. Elder Yma, who actually oversaw all the healers, found it was a handy tool to have. The hardest thing for a healer was to see clearly inside someone using the force. Sometimes your own mind would distort what you are seeing. Sometimes you are seeing properly, but you cannot understand what you are seeing. When you have Chitrah do a scan, than more eyes can look at the same thing, and figure it out. This helped them all out in diagnosing and treating different types of cancer. This also helped them to understand what gallstones and kidney stones looked like. Those were two things that were usually very difficult to see with the force, when you have never seen them before, because they usually had multiple crystal layers, and no symmetry.

They were able to master air and earth quite quickly because of the excellent instruction. Amblin-Elu told them that it takes a lot of experience in the earth element before you can start using rocks. You have to feel the force interact with the rock. She picked up a rock using the force, than she fashioned it into a solid rock shield. After she let it go, her students were surprised that it did not return to being a rock, but instead crumbled into a pile of rock dust. She reminded the students that this is always the sacrifice a rock makes when you use it. It can never be put back the way it was. To learn the water element they went to the very interior of the mountain ranges. The pass leading to the valley they needed to connect to was just beyond where the pirate ship had landed. At the far end of the valley were hot springs. The springs ran into a number of pools before exiting into a shallow lake. It was only the elders that enjoyed sitting in the hottest pools. The cooler pools were preferred by everyone else. They were still quite hot. You could still see the steam coming off of them even on a hot day. On a very cold day the steam was so thick it looked like a fog. Sisters were allowed to bring family with them when they trained, because the shallow lake was warm. Children could play in it for hours, and not get too hot or too cold, since they were always going in and out of the water. The valley was fairly barren, so Saurian fliers did not even fly over it, looking for food. So when you go to the valley, you bring your own food. If you are going to be there an extended period of time, you arrange for food to be brought to you at regular intervals.

No one in the Singing Mountain Clan had ever heard of swimming outfits. Except for the special outfit they wore in the cold water of the lake they did their final training exercise. So when they decided to go into the water, they simply removed all of their clothing. Andriel and Chitrah were not happy to hear that. They did not want Erin to see all the naked young ladies that Krillgan would be training with. They told the Clan Mother that this was not a bonding ceremony, so there was no reason that everyone had to be naked. Andriel showed her the swimming tunics she had made on Manaan. She told her that she was willing to make something similar for everyone that was going.

If it had been anyone else, Mother would have simply told them that they did not need to go. But this was Mother Andriel and Father Chitrah who were asking. So she agreed to let them do what they think is best. When the Sister who was asked to be the instructor heard about this, she went to Mother and protested. She thought that wearing any kind of clothing, would be too restrictive in their movements. Interfering with her ability to train the young Sisters properly. Mother took the easy way out, and sent the instructor to talk to Mother Andriel. This scared the Sister, because she had remembered the warning that Mother had given them about hurting Mother Andriel or Father Chitrah. The Sister had found her to be a nice lady to talk to, and she even had a dress that Mother Andriel had made for her. It was her favorite, and she wore it every feast day, always getting nice compliments. But she was afraid to argue with her. What if she hurt her and brought a curse down on her clan like Mother did. So she went to Krillgan, to ask his advice.

Krillgan remembered the bathing tunic he wore on Manaan. He also agreed that it would probably be too restrictive, but he did not want all the young ladies being naked. It was hard enough being naked with them in the Bonding Ceremony. At least it was not very light in the temple, and when they were talking and sharing, he rarely saw more than a Sisters shoulders and head. It was only when they were undressing and dressing that he saw their bodies. He was also worried that in the water it would be much harder to avoid accidental contact. He preferred that they wear something. He told the Sister this. She was a little surprised by this, because every man that she has been with, has always wanted to see her naked. Krillgan reminded her that he was there to train, not to flirt. A naked female body can be a distraction. Krillgan told her that the best way to talk to Mother Andriel was to be honest and open, the way she would talk with a Sister with whom she had a disagreement. He promised her that she would listen. He also said that he would come with her and support her. Because he also did not want their movement restricted. She was surprised by this, considering what he just said about wearing clothes. She had hoped that she could talk Mother Andriel into letting them train naked. Now she realised that that would not happen. So they now needed to find a compromise where everyone could be happy.

They found Mother Andriel in the seamstress shop. The Sister was surprised that Krillgan disappeared just after they found her. She entered the seamstress shop by herself and told Mother Andriel that she needed to talk with her. She was the Sister charged with training the young Sisters in mastering the water elements. She had just been informed that they would be required to wear some form of clothing. At that moment she heard a knock on the door.

The Sister was confused by this. Why didn't they just walk in like she did? When a young seamstress answered the door. She saw Krillgan with Father Chitrah asking for permission to come in. That is when the Sister realised that men were not allowed in without permission. Even Father Chitrah who was married to the head seamstress.

She was surprised that they were both there to support her. This was quite a surprise. Since they were told that they were not allowed to be naked anywhere in a public place, in case they offend Father Chitrah. Father Chitrah told his wife that the tunics she made them on Manaan were fine for just bathing in, like they did on Manaan, but they were not good for moving around in the water. Chitrah told her that he was hoping to take advantage of this trip to learn how to swim. He is Chagrian after all.

Mother Andriel recognised the mini revolt for what it was. She promised them that she would come up with a better design. So that they would be comfortable wearing it in the water. She told the Sister that she would need her help to do it.

Mother Andriel knew about the outfit that they wear in cold water. The Sister objected, she said they would overheat if they wore it in the training lake. It was not like regular clothing, it was more like armour against the cold water. Still Mother Andriel insisted that she bring one, and then they can talk about what is restrictive, and what is not.

When she brought an outfit, Mother Andriel thought it looked like it was way too small for her. She wondered if this was intentional. She asked the Sister to put it on. The Sister was not sure she heard her right. She asked if she wanted her to put it on in here. Mother Andriel asked her what was wrong. Was she afraid of revealing her body? The Sister told her it was not that. She would need a tub of water to soak it in first. She was worried that she would get everything in the room wet while she puts the outfit on. Mother Andriel had not been told of this. Now she knew why the outfits were all pretty much close to the same size. They would stretch when wet, hugging the body. There would be some restriction to movement. But not as much as she thought, since the outfit would stretch. She still needed to see her in the outfit. She informed the Sister that they would hold up material around her to prevent her from getting everything wet.

They brought a large tub of water into the seamstress's shop. The Sister placed the outfit in the tub, then went out to find a Sister to help her get in it. The old seamstresses showed Mother Andriel the fabric they use to make the outfits from. It was very loosely woven fabric, it would have some stretch when it was dry, even more when it was wet. They told her how they layered it to try and provide some heat protection from the frigid waters. Andriel understood the theory. She did not think it worked very well. She felt that water would still flow very easily between layers, so if you moved quickly. All the water your body just warmed up would be left behind. She watched the Sister put the outfit on. She noticed the little bumps that quickly formed all over her body as she did, because they had not bothered to warm the water up after hauling it out of the stream. She asked the Sister about that. The Sister told her that she was used to it, since she has done the training a number of times, and the water from the lake feels even colder after they soak the outfits in the lake before putting them on. Mother Andriel asked her how much the suits help them. The Sister told her that she tried going across the lake without it once. She did not get very far before she knew that she was getting too cold, and had to go back. With the outfit, it is more bearable. Especially for the first part of the trip. But by the time you get half way, it feels like it's no longer helping. Then it is a race to get to the other side of the lake before you start shaking so much from the cold, that you lose control of your body altogether. That has happened a few times. Fortunately the other Sisters still had enough strength, so they could drag the Sister paralyzed by the cold, to the shore. Mother Andriel asked her why they do it, if it is so dangerous. The Sister told her that this was a big part of the reason. Being able to stare death in the face and survive. The other reason is to watch a sunrise and a sunset over the Great Desert. You can see most of the Great Desert from the cliff face at the far end of the mountain lake, where it spills over the edge to the Great Desert below. To see the desert first hit with sunlight, and the colours of the sky interact with the sand, is breathtaking.

Mother Andriel asked if there was an easier way. She told her that once a Sister is sufficiently skilled in the water element, she can form water shields on the surface of the water, and walk across. But she has never known a Sister to reach that level of ability, until after she has made the cold lake walk. The Sister helping her, tucked in the first overlapping flap that covered most of her back. She took the outer flap and brought it completely across her back the other way and tied it off at its anchor points. To Andriel this made sense. This way you give extra protection to the back and kidneys. She asked the Sister to demonstrate the movements that she does underwater, and to tell her of any restrictions she feels. After the Sister went through a number of movements. Andriel thanked her, and helped unfasten the outfit, since the other Sister had left, once it was on. What they did not know was the outfit was acting like a giant wick. Drawing up water from the tub. It also had a large surface area, so it was using the heat energy from the Sisters body to evaporate the water.

By the time the Sister had climbed out of the suit, she was shaking violently. Andriel dried her quickly then hugged her to herself to share her body heat with her. She told one of the seamstresses to run to the kitchen which was a short walk away, and to get a hot cup of tea for the Sister. In the meantime Andriel had grabbed a cloak and wrapped it around both of them. The Sister told her through chattering teeth that this is how they have to warm up at the end of the walk, but the person you are trying to warm up with, is just as cold as you are, and there is no one there to make tea until after they have warmed up. She was grateful for the hot tea, and tried to remove the cloak. Andriel would not let her, until after she had finished her tea, and had stopped shivering. After the Sister dressed, she showed Mother Andriel how they use the force to get as much of the water that is in the suit, out. Because wringing it out by hand is not good enough. It reminded Andriel of putting the wet nerf wool through Mrs. Grimshaw's hand wringer, where you had to crank the wool through. Because Andriel had seen the movements, and knew where the restrictions occur, she had some ideas for possible designs for swimming suits. Now she had to figure out what materials to use. She cut out pieces of fabric, about the size of a stretched hand, and placed them in the tub. She let them soak in there for a while. While she sat down and quickly sketched all the designs she could think of. Then she looked at the designs, to determine if they would cause any restriction to movement. She was planning on using materials that did not stretch when immersed in water. What was the purpose in wearing an outfit, if it was just going to stretch and slip off, once you entered the water? She finally settled on a design that she hoped would be accepted by everyone. She would have a sleeveless blouse that would only go down to the diaphragm, for a top. For the bottoms she made some shorts with a drawstring. They would both be made out of a heavier material than a regular blouse and be darker in colour. She wanted them to be slightly loose. So they would not trap heat against the body in the lake where they trained. She invited the instructor over to try it out. She also wore her old bathing tunic design, so she could see what Andriel had originally intended. The Sister put it on, then moved around. She felt no restriction to her movement. The Sister asked her, why the top was open at the bottom? Mother Andriel told her that it was to allow the water to flow freely around the body so that they do not overheat while training. She also told her not to bend over to pick things up when not in the water. Then Andriel dropped something and asked the Sister to be a dear, and pick it up. When she bent over and the blouse partly covered her face, leaving her mountains fully exposed, she understood Mother Andriel's warning. The Sister asked her what Krillgan will be wearing. Mother Andriel told her the exact same thing. The design was for all Sisters. Now she knew why the bottoms were designed the way they were. They will look alright on a young lady. They will look much better on a young man. Mother Andriel suggested that she walk over and show her Mother the design. If she approves, then the seamstresses will start sewing them for everyone that will be going for training. The Sister asked Mother Andriel, if she was serious about her walking through the village looking like this? Andriel asked her, what was wrong with that? The Sister told her that she felt naked, thinking about how everyone would look at her. Mother Andriel asked, if that was not the point? She was the one that wanted to walk around naked by the water. The Sister told her that that was different, there was something about being next to a lovely pool of water that makes you want to take all your clothes off. Andriel told her that she never had that feeling. So the Sister did as she was asked. She was sure that every guy in the village, was peeking through every doorway and window, to have a look at her.

She told Mother, that this was Mother Andriel's new design for swimwear training wear for all Sisters. Mother had her turn around. Then she knocked something off her desk, and asked the Sister to be a dear and pick it up. She bent at her knees, and not her waist, and told Mother that Mother Andriel had already tricked her into picking something up for her. Mother asked her, what Krillgan would be wearing? The Sister said that Mother Andriel had designed it for all Sisters. Mother liked that. She asked the instructor if there was any reason why they should not approve it. The Sister told her that she has felt no restrictions to her movement. She feels naked walking around the village like this. So that means that she will be next to naked in the water. If the top becomes too much of a problem being so open at the bottom. They can always get Mother Andriel to add a drawstring or ribbon, so they can tie it off. Mother agreed and told her that she can tell Mother Andriel to make them for all the Sisters doing water training, and anyone else that was going, that wanted to go in the water.

Mother Andriel had already selected the material she was going to use for Chitrah's swimsuit. She was going to make his top a little tighter, just like she was for Krillgan's swimsuit. Only she found a nice blue material to use for Chitrah. It was very close to the colour of his skin. From a distance, he would look like he was naked when he had his outfit on. She'll find out how the Sisters liked being teased.


	12. Chapter 12

©2016

The elders that were accompanying them to the hot springs, told Andriel that they did not need any swimming outfits. Their bodies were so wrinkly they did not think anyone could tell if they were wearing clothes or not. Besides they were the only ones that went all the way up to the first hot spring pools. The only ones to see them way up there, was the occasional Saurian flier.

Andriel found it very relaxing to be there. There were no sand beaches. All the beaches were made of small round stones. The water was very shallow for a long way out and there were no predators in the water. The fish that were in the water, were all small plant eaters. So it was safe for the children to go into the water to play.

You had to go out more than twenty meters before the water level reached your waist. Some of the young Sisters did gasp the first time they saw Father Chitrah in his swimsuit, than they giggled when they realised they had been tricked. Chitrah loved his new swimsuit, and he was all for teasing the Sisters. It only took him a few days to learn how to swim underwater. He was surprised that his Chagrian skin still worked like it should. He found that he could stay under water for around twenty minutes at a time, before he had to surface and fill his lungs with fresh air. The instructor only took her class to knee depth, before she started to instruct her class on how to make water shields. To test them she would throw a ball of force fire at them. They had to form a water shield to protect themselves, or be burnt. The young Sisters loved it, because it was just like they were in combat.

After they were comfortable with forming water shields, the instructor took them to waist depth to teach them how to make water javelins. She showed them how in the water they only need to use a flick of the wrist to send it flying. The water would absorb most of the energy, if they tried to use their whole arm. The javelin itself would only travel a couple of meters when thrown with the arm, before dissolving. If you just flicked your wrist, you could easily send it twenty meters or more. She always asked Krillgan if he knew where Father Chitrah was before she would let them fire off the water javelins. He was the only healer in the group, so he was the most sensitive for feeling where the life force of creatures where. She did not want to accidentally impale him with a water javelin.

Now that they were waist deep. Chitrah would swim by and touch a Sister in the small of her back or on her leg. Which has made more than one Sister suddenly scream, until they figured out what was happening. The Sisters found it a little eerie because they could not see him in the blue water, unless they were looking down, and could see him against the stones on the bottom. The Sister instructing them, did not mind these attacks, because it kept everyone on their toes. It also made them more attentive. Here they were being attacked by someone that meant them no harm. In the cold lake where they would be doing their final training for this session. There were creatures that wanted to make a meal out of you.

When everyone was comfortable with water javelins, it was time to go deep. Everyone knew how to place air shields around their heads, so that they can breathe underwater. They also needed to be able to make water shields and javelins at the same time as maintaining their air shield. The final thing they needed to learn as a group, was to form one water shield completely surrounding them, also known as a water bubble. Because one of the predators, in the cold water lake, liked to stun its prey with a jolt of lightning. The people of Dathomir did not know what electricity was, even though they had seen it used. To them lightning was the closest they came to understanding electricity.

With their warm water training complete. The Sisters sent everyone else back to the village. They would be going on to the cold water lake by themselves. Before leaving, Mother Andriel gave the instructor a specially designed silk under garment. Andriel told her that it should help keep her warmer for a longer period of time in the cold lake. As she was the only one in the group, who had experience in the cold lake, the Clan Mother wanted her to try it out before letting the students wear it. She did not want to take away from their staring death in the face experience. The garment was a long sleeve top, and a full length bottom. Only the elbows, shoulders and knees had been cut out, so as not to restrict her movements. Mother Andriel suggested that she wear it underneath her swimming outfit, and she does not need to pre-wet it. She told her that if she approved. There were custom made outfits for each one of them, with their names on it, for the trip back. What she did not tell her was that she had made Krillgan a silk top to wear under his regular swimming top. She felt that the silk top with his fur, should make him the warmest of all the Sisters.

At the lake they found a cold water outfit lying on the ground for each one of them. There were even boots made from the same material with tree bark sewn on their bottoms to act as the sole of a shoe. Krillgan asked the instructor if the boots were a normal part of the outfit, or was this something new. She told him that the boots were part of the outfit, but the tree bark was something new. There was also a pile of flat rocks. The instructor told them that they would need to put the flat rocks into pockets sewn into the lower half of the outfits, to help keep them weighted down, so it was easier to walk along the bottom. Since it was late they would sleep there that night. They would eat a big breakfast first thing in the morning, because they would not be able to eat anything else until they made it to the other side. There was one Sister with them that this was her third attempt to go through the training. There was a certain point in the lake, where they step off of a cliff, and sink to the bottom. It is called the point of no return. Any Sister, if she does not feel comfortable, for whatever reason, is allowed to turn back before taking the step. For some reason the predators do not attack when you are in the shallower water. Some Sisters think it is because you use the natural sunlight to see. Once you step off the cliff, you only have blue force light to see by, also known as a ball of cold flame. So you can't see as far as you can in the shallow water. Krillgan suspected that it might have something to do with the Saurian Fliers he saw from time to time. This Sister has turned back twice already. She was determined not to turn back a third time. In the morning, while they ate their breakfast they had each put their outfits in the water to soak, and placed a couple of flat rocks on them so they wouldn't float away. The instructor found that because she was wearing the silk outfit, the shock of putting the cold water outfit on, was not as great. At the cliff the instructor went up to each student, and merged her air shield with theirs to ask them if they were turning back. This was the only way that the instructor knew how to talk with someone underwater. None of the students wanted to turn back. So when she tapped them on the shoulder they knew it was time to generate the blue light and step off of the cliff.

While he was floating down to the bottom, Krillgan could sense the creatures approaching, staying just outside the light. Suddenly one of the creatures charged. Krillgan stepped into the path the creature was taking, and threw up a water shield. The creature smashed into the shield. Then Krillgan forced it back by flicking water javelins at it. The creature had scales like a fish, but moved and had teeth like an eel. It was about as big around as his father's thigh, and close to two meters in length. He was sure those teeth were razor sharp. The water javelin was not able to penetrate its scales. But Krillgan was sure it felt like it had received some solid punches. The instructor had warned them that the younger creatures were much more likely to attack, since they had not encountered Sisters before. The older predators would stay outside of the light, and wait for an opening to appear before attacking. Ludia and Diennu had each followed Krillgan's example, in thwarting attacks. They were getting much better at sensing life. The Sisters continued moving in the direction the instructor had indicated. They could just barely make out footprints on the lakes bottom, indicating where others had gone before. The attacks started increasing in number. Suddenly they started attacking two and three at a time. One of the Sisters started to panic, and was hyperventilating. The instructor and the Sister that had turned back twice before, went up to either side of her, to help stabilize her air shield, and calm her down. Krillgan went up to her and combined his air shield with hers. Because he had blue skin like his father's, he was sure the air in his air shield had more oxygen than hers. He told her that he had taken more air in his air shield than anyone else, and was willing to share it. She started breathing easier, and thanked Krillgan for sharing his air.

They were only able to get a little further, when suddenly they were swarmed. Krillgan called to everyone like they were Rancor, telling them to form the water bubble shield. They formed it just in time. The predators started bouncing off of it from all directions. The one Sister had started to panic again. Because the instructor and the other Sister were able to help stabilise her air shield, and because the water bubble held. She started calming down again. Then a new predator showed up. It was twice as big around as the others, and had a coarse skin rather than scales. Krillgan knew from the instructor's description, that this was the predator that liked to stun its victims with lightning. The Sisters did not know how to move, and maintain the bubble water shield at the same time. They had to maintain the bubble shield to protect themselves from this creature's attack. They also had to move because they were all getting colder. Soon they would start losing control of their bodies. This might also cause their air shields and water shields to collapse.

Krillgan had an idea. The new predator was not the only creature here that could play with lightning. He told the Sisters what he was planning on doing, just like he did before. The instructor did not know how they were able to hear him, but every Sister nodded at him saying they understood. What he had told them was that he was going to force his one hand through the water bubble. To act as bait. When enough predators came around to try and take the bait, he was going to blast them with force lightning. Because they were underwater, he doubted that he could burn them. He was hoping that he could stun them like the fat one does. Then they would have to collapse the bubble and make a run for it.

By concentrating, he was able to get his one hand through the water bubble. Because of the blue force light, his hand almost seemed to glow blue. It did attract the attention of most of the predators, especially the fat one. Krillgan had noticed before, that the others had kept a healthy distance from it. But because they were all interested in his hand they were crowding in. One of them suddenly moved. Krillgan suspected it was going for his hand, he had hoped that they would be closer, but unleashed the force lightning anyway.

What was unexpected, was the fat one had also released its lightning. Krillgan felt it in his hand. He hoped the predator did it as a defensive reaction to being stunned.

The Sisters broke the water bubble and started walking as fast as they could. Krillgan brought up the rear because he could sense life further than he could see. He sensed a lot of new movement around the creatures he had stunned. He could also smell blood in the water. Krillgan hoped that this meant that other predators were feasting on the ones he had stunned, and would leave them alone. He sent a water javelin at any life that he sensed breaking off the other group and started coming towards them. That usually stopped them. The Sisters where finally at the place where they could climb up to shallow water and to safety. They all tried moving as fast as they could, when they saw the hut. Krillgan again spoke to everyone to jettison the flat rocks, they can pick them up on the way back. They all did what he said, and floating up. As soon as they surfaced, they no longer needed to maintain their air shield, and started swimming, using their force energy to propel them that much faster. As soon as they reached the hut, they all helped each other out of their outfits. Which was really hard to do when you are shivering, and your hands are shaking. Once they removed all of their clothing, they all knew what to do next. There was an extra wide mattress. Krillgan laid down on one side. Ludia right up next to him and Diennu right up next to her, and so on until the instructor was at the other end. They had all pulled up quilts to cover themselves and the Sisters on either side of them. It took a while for them all to stop shivering. Eventually they felt warmth coming from the person right next to them. The instructor had asked Krillgan to take the one side, because she knew from the Bonding Ceremony that he had a thin layer of fur all over his body. So could tolerate being the end person more than any other Sister. She took the other end, because she felt it was her responsibility, and no one had volunteered. When she felt warm enough, she was sure the Sisters in the center were even warmer. She told everyone that it was time to get up and finish their chores before they could go back to bed.

Krillgan pretended he had fallen asleep, so Ludia had to shake him, to get him up. First they dressed into the warm clothes that had been brought there for them. Then they wrung out their outfits outside, and hung them up to dry. Next they all did their assigned chore. In no time they had a nice fire going, with a stew they had put together. Some flat bread was cooking on the rocks next to the fire. It wasn't long before they all had a nice bowl of hot stew and some freshly baked flat bread to go with it, and some hot tea to wash it all down. Now they were ready to crawl back into bed. They just removed their outer layers, and laid back down in the order they had first laid down. They did not need all the quilts they had used before. But they were comfortable and warm, and it wasn't long before they were all fast asleep.

It was still dark outside when the instructor suddenly sat up. She was glad they had not missed it. She quickly got everyone up, and organised a quick breakfast. After breakfast she reminded the Sisters that what they were about to see was the reward for coming here. She suggested that they all grab a quilt, and follow her to the top of the cliff. She also said it was okay to hold hands with the person next to you. It is a better experience if you share it. When they made it to the edge of the cliff, they could see that the Great Desert was already becoming light, even though it was still very dark in the mountains where they are. Krillgan sat between Ludia and Diennu. They did not hold hands. Instead both young ladies rested their heads on his broad shoulders, while he had an arm around each of their waists.

They saw the first rays of sunlight touch the desert. It must be coming through a mountain pass somewhere, because it looked like a javelin of light suddenly traveling from one end of the desert to the other end. Then the javelin became wider and finally filled the whole desert. As the sun rose higher, the colours of the desert changed. It was like a master artist had quickly spread a wash of colours over it, then started blending the colours together to make new colours. All to the background of a pale blue sky in the direction they were facing. It was really worth the price they paid to come there.

After the sun rose high enough that the colours no longer changed, the Sisters slowly stood up. The Sister that had made it across on her third try told the instructor that she envied Krillgan, Ludia, and Diennu. She thought they had the ideal life, it was so romantic. The instructor told her that it was only ideal for now, but the three of them are heading for major heart break.

The Sister asked her to explain. She told her that all three of them had pledged to be celibate until they marry. It's pretty clear that Krillgan loves them both. But he can only marry one. So his heart will be broken when he has to choose one. The young lady he rejects will also have her heart broken. The young lady he chooses will have her heart torn because of her two friends. For added pressure, everyone knows that Mother wants him to marry her daughter Ludia. Now there's a mother-in-law you don't want to say no to.

When they returned to the hut, the instructor told them that if anyone wants to go back inside and nap, they can. Everyone was too wide awake after seeing such a spectacular view. So they all had a second breakfast. The instructor outlined the plan for the day. They were supposed to rest and rebuild their energy and food reserves. Krillgan asked if the way the predators attacked them was normal. The instructor told them that this was the worst she has ever encountered, and thanked Krillgan for his quick thinking, he had literally saved everyone's life. They all started thanking him. Krillgan told them that he had to do something or Mother Andriel would have been very upset with him. The Sisters laughed because he was trying to be modest. The instructor mentioned that when the slow moving lightning predator shows up, the others tend to disappear before they appear on its menu. They knew from her instruction in the warm water lake, that the lightning predator can be killed with the water javelin, they just need to wait until it has discharged its lightning. You have to act quickly, because it only takes a few seconds for it to recharge itself. The instructor asked Krillgan how he was able to communicate with all of them. It had never been done before. Krillgan told her that he just pretended that he was talking to Rancor. It's not a great stretch on the imagination if they remember what they all look like in the outfits. This caused the Sisters to laugh. In a way they did kind of look like Rancor in the outfits. The Instructor would definitely be passing that information along. She also reminded Krillgan to share it at the next Bonding Ceremony. She was sure that this was one experience that they would all want to share.

Diennu asked the instructor how everything got there. The quilts, the food, and the firewood. They could not be brought underwater, and they had fresh meat in their stew last night. The instructor shared with them what they would be learning the next time they went for training on the water elements. They will learn how to make water shields on the surface of the water, and walk across the lake. She told them that it is much harder than it sounds, because water shields are very slippery, they are also not anchored, so if they do not step on it just right, it can shoot out from underneath them. "During your training, expect to spend as much time in the water as we did, with our training."

She told them that they will be responsible for bringing the supplies for the next group that will be making the trip along the bottom of the lake. "They don't know it yet, but they are depending on you for their survival, just like we depended on the previous group for our survival. We are Sisters, we will always need one another."

Because they are facing west when sitting on the top edge of the cliff. They actually saw the sun itself set over the desert. It was just as spectacular a view as the sunrise, except there was as much colour in the sky, as on the sand.

When they went back to the hut, the instructor found the package containing the custom made silk underwear that Mother Andriel made for them. She was warmer for a lot longer than she had ever been. She was still shivering when they finally made it to the hut, so it was not a perfect fix. But it was a big help, one she was going to recommend.

The trip back was uneventful, as it always seemed to be. Krillgan noticed that the predators hung back more than they did on the first trip. What they weren't expecting was that there was a big fire waiting for them on the shore. The previous class was waiting for them. Only the instructor knew that they were there. This was another tradition the Sisters had, to help bring them closer. The previous class helped them out of all their clothing. They were surprised to find them all wearing silk underwear. After helping them out of their wet clothes. They quickly dried them off, then they wrapped a quilt around the cold Sister with the assisting Sister wrapping herself in the quilt with them to share their body heat. The only snag the Sisters had was deciding who would be assisting Krillgan. They were surprised when Mother showed up and randomly picked a Sister to assist Krillgan. They were not surprised to see Butashe with her. It made sense that they would be there. Sisters that were mothers always came along to help the class when their daughters were walking the lake, this also was part of their tradition. Mother had chosen to assist the instructor, because there wasn't enough Sisters in the previous class to assist everyone. Butashe brought them all nice warm cups of tea to help warm them up.

The instructor told Mother about their walk to the other side, and how Krillgan saved their lives, and how he was able to communicate with them. She also told her that the silk underwear did help keep them warmer for much longer, before the cold finally set in. Mother said that that must be the reason that her skin did not look that blue from the cold, when she helped her out of her clothes. After they stopped shivering and dressed. Butashe had a hot bowl of stew and some fresh baked flatbread for everyone.

Word eventually got out to the other clans that the Singing Mountain Clan was training a male Sister. A purple skinned male Sister. Everyone knew that meant that he had to be a healer. The Nightsisters' Mother told her Sisters that they needed to find out as much as they can about this male Sister. Now she knew who to invite to their special banquet from the Singing Mountain Clan. Every five years they hold a banquet on the Glass Mountain. To the clans it is known as their recruiting banquet. To the Nightsisters it is so much more. This is where they get most of their Intel on the health of the clans. Who is being given special training? Meaning a possible successor to the current Clan Mother. How satisfied or dissatisfied are the clan Sisters with their clan? Which clans are currently fighting over territory? This banquet was sanctioned by the Council of Mothers to the first Mother of the Nightsisters, when the Nightsisters still had in ally in the council. The Nightsisters could invite one person from each of the clans. At first it was used as a recruitment banquet, but then the Clan Mothers got wise and started sending other Sisters in place of the one they invited, saying that they were going through special training. So now it was a strategy play. The Clan Mothers would try and determine why the Nightsisters chose to invite that clan Sister. Do they allow her to go, or do they send another. The Nightsisters only send out the invitations a month before the banquet. So the Clan Mothers do not have much time to plan a counter move. But the Nightsisters take a long time in planning their guest list. The other thing the Clan Mothers know, is that the Nightsisters like to hold the banquet during a major high tide period. When at least three moons are lined up to affect the tide. So if a clan Sister chooses to depart the banquet early. She can't, since the mountain is usually surrounded by water.

Mother suspected that Krillgan would be invited, once the Nightsisters found out about him. Now that the clans know, it is only a matter of time, before the Nightsisters do. It was time to put him on display.

Krillgan is considered fully trained as a healer. (Every year when they send Sisters to the settlements that still give them tribute. The Singing Mountain Clan makes sure that one of the two Sisters going to visit the clan is a healer.) This year they are sending three Sisters, and Mother Andriel. Mother Andriel and Krillgan work very well together as a healing team. Mother Andriel does the initial first physical contact with a patient, so the two of them can make the initial diagnostic assessment. If the patient requires some physical manipulation. Mother Andriel will do it, strengthened by Krillgan. Mother Andriel has set quite a few dislocated joints. From dislocated fingers to dislocated shoulders, and dislocated hips. After Krillgan has checked the patient using the force, to make sure that everything is in its right place. Then Krillgan can step in to do the final healing. When the patient leaves, it is like the dislocation never happened. No walking around with a brace or sling until the stretched tendons and ligaments return to their proper shape.

Mother Andriel has also set a few fractured limbs. She told Mother how strong she feels when Krillgan strengthens her. She can set a fractured limb by herself that normally takes two normal people. Because she was sending Krillgan, she had to send Ludia and Diennu. Those three are inseparable.

They were the ones who approached the Herd Mother for her approval on the Rancor they would be taking on this trip. Diennu would be taking Protector, but she also wanted Mother Andriel to ride with her, since Protector was the largest of the three Rancor they would be taking. Ludia had bonded with a young female Rancor, she named "My Friend", Krillgan had not yet bonded with any Rancor, much to the Herd Mother's disappointment. But any Rancor was willing to carry him, and every Sister was willing to lone him hers if she was not riding it.

Aliyanna had bonded with a Rancor she called "Strongman", but because she is still too young she has not been allowed to go on any caravans. So she is only allowed to use him with the odd jobs around the village. Aliyanna is one of only a handful of beastmasters that have figured out how to ride a Rancor, and still communicate with it. If asked, she will admit that Krillgan helped her. So when she is finished all her chores, and all her training. She and Strongman can be seen running through the woods around the village, with Aliyanna on Strongman's back.

Krillgan had asked Aliyanna's and Strongman's permission, before asking the Herd Mother if he could ride Strongman on this trip. The Herd Mother gave her blessing. So now it was the Clan Mother's turn to give hers. She had told them that this trip was also going to be a goodwill gesture to the clans. As Ludia and Krillgan will be carrying the yellow flags, there should be no conflict with any clan Sister. They will all want to meet this male Sister from the Singing Mountain Clan.

Chances are that many Sisters will invite him to sleep with them. Which is another reason that Diennu, Ludia, and Mother Andriel are with him.

The Clan Mothers will want to meet both Krillgan and Mother Andriel, and will probably have private talks with them, as if they were receiving a Clan Mother.

Chitrah had told Krillgan that there is an artisan in the Great Canyon Clan that knows how to make stone knives. He needs to have a pair made, just like his mother's and father's. When he gets back Chitrah will share with him the techniques the Togruta employ to keep their knives hidden.

The last thing the Clan Mother warned Krillgan about, before they left, were the healers of the Misty Falls Clan. They will want to thoroughly examine him. If they do not have any healing skills they are willing to share, than ignore them. They will only consume his time.

They were well received when they arrived in the Singing Mountain Clan's compound, next to the town. The town's people invited them to join them for dinner. Krillgan politely turned them down. He told them that they needed to rest before pushing on. The women looked at him like he was crazy. Why cook your own meals, when someone is willing to cook for you. Krillgan told them that he felt something off about the town, and did not want to go inside.

They had enough provisions, so that this was not a big issue. They were just tired of cooking for themselves. After dinner Krillgan went to sleep right away. At least they get to sleep on beds. Diennu decided to put her Ranger training to work. She wanted to see if there really was something wrong with the town. She made herself appear small and went into the town. The town's people where in their dining area talking about the purple male Sister, who turned down a free dinner. Diennu snuck into their kitchen, because they had finished washing up. They were just sitting around drinking their ale and talking.

As Diennu listened, it wasn't long before she realised that there was a woman with them, who wasn't from the town. At first she tried getting as much information out of them as she could. When she realised that they did not know anything. She started polluting the hearts and minds of the town's people against Krillgan.

Diennu was furious! She knew that she had to put a stop to it. She boldly walked into the dining area and confronted the woman.

"You witch. All you are good at is twisting truth and planting lies. Leave these innocent people alone."

"What are we too good for you?"

"You Nightsisters are good for no one, including the people of this town."

"I suppose you want to fight me?"

"The only reason I have not killed you already, is to protect the neutrality of this town and the innocent people in it. You are not worthy of a fight."

This scared the Nightsister. First she did not even know that the clan Sister was in the building. Second that this Sister claimed to be powerful enough that she could dispatch her without having to fight her.

She was told that the Sisters of the Singing Mountain Clan do not boast. They can always back up what they say.

The Nightsister got up. "We will meet again."

"If we do, you won't know it."

The Nightsister fled. After the Nightsister left, Diennu apologised to the people of the town. She told them that her companions normally greatly enjoy the hospitality of good people. But one of them sensed the presence of one that was not good, which is why they retired to their own compound. The town's people where speechless after witnessing the confrontation between the two women.

One of them finally spoke. "The fault is our own for not recognising the woman for who she is. Normally the town's Rancor will warn the beastmaster that there is a Nightsister in town, but she made sure she avoided the Rancor." Diennu told them that it did not matter anymore. If they need the services of a healer, they should come by their compound in the morning, there are two capable people who can look after them.

When Diennu went back to the compound, Mother Andriel and Ludia, were waiting for her. They asked her, what did she find? She told them that Krillgan was right in doing what he did. There was a disguised Nightsister in town. Ludia asked her if she got rid of her. Diennu told them she did, she pretended that she was as powerful as her mother. Mother Andriel went up to her and hugged her. She told her that she doesn't have to pretend, because she is. She can even ask her mother.

The next morning the entire town came to the Singing Mountain Clan's compound with breakfast. They told Diennu that all of the town's people where fine, but one of their Rancor was recently injured. Do healers also look after creatures? Mother Andriel told the people that they will go have a look at their Rancor. As Krillgan followed his mother, he grabbed something off of a plate to munch on, on the way. The women from the town had to laugh. He was definitely a guy. As the people from the town were eating and conversing with Diennu and Ludia. They were surprised that the healers returned so soon. Mother Andriel told them that their Rancor was all better. The two of them sat down and helped themselves to what the people brought.

One of the town's people asked Andriel, if she was the Builder's wife that they had heard about? She told them she is. They said that they did not know that she was also a Sister. She told them she wasn't. She was just a seamstress, weaver, and mother, when she wasn't helping with healing. They asked her how she can be a healer if she wasn't a Sister. She told them that if healing only involved the force, then only force users would get injured or sick. But because anyone can get injured or sick, it was the person with the right heart that can bring healing.

After breakfast the beastmaster went up to the Rancor that was injured, and asked about the injury. The Rancor said there was no injury. The beastmaster asked the Rancor what the healers did. The Rancor just said the healer healed him. The beastmaster could not get any clarification. So the beastmaster went around to the other Rancor to ask them. They all said the same thing. Now the Rancor had never encountered a healer before. So they thought that what the healer did, is what the healer was supposed to do. That is why he was called a healer.

The group decided to first go to the settlement that had dug into the base of a hill to hide themselves from pirates. When they entered the entrance way, they could smell something wrong in the air. When they found the people, everyone looked sick. One of them said it was because of the floods that came almost every time it rained, now. Their settlement has not been dry for months. Now they have mold growing everywhere. Mother Andriel ordered everyone outside into the fresh air. It bothered her that there was a pregnant young lady that was breathing in, all this moldy air. No wonder everyone looked sick. Now they were all contaminated.

Mother Andriel had grabbed some pots and pans on her way out. She handed a pot to Diennu and asked one of the people from the settlement to show her where she can find fresh water. Ludia took that as a hint, and started a fire going. Krillgan spoke to the leaders of the settlement, about what their possible options were. They just squatted there, dumbfounded. They had no place to go. All they have is a soggy hole in the ground, which is making them all sick. They had to let their Brackaset go fend for themselves, because they refused to go into the dwelling. Fortunately they came back every morning and every evening to be milked or they would have already starved to death.

Krillgan asked them, where they make their cheese? They told them that they make it in their home. Krillgan told them that their cheese is full of mold spores and would have to be destroyed.

"Where do they store their grains?"

"In their home."

Krillgan told them that their grain would have to be washed, than roasted, then washed again, before it can be cooked for eating. The only way that they can go back to living inside, is if the entire settlement was purified by fire.

Before they can think of doing that, they have to first find a way to stop the flood waters from coming into it. Or they'll will be right back where they started.

The first order of business, was to decontaminate everyone. He asked them about their bathing situation. They told him that they have a large wooden bathtub, and some homemade soap. Krillgan asked them to go get it. He also sent Diennu and Ludia to go hunting. He told them that if they encounter anyone, tell them to keep away from them, because they are contaminated as well. They are covered in mold spores.

Krillgan went to talk with his mother. He asked her what they were going to do about clothing. The best thing to do is to burn all the clothes, and let everyone run around naked, after taking a good bath. But these people need to live. To live they need to work. To work they need food, and clothing, and tools. They need a warm safe place to sleep at night. Or every time they turn around, they will contaminate themselves again. Mother told him that they will have to find a way.

When the water had boiled. Andriel made a tea from her supply that should help remove toxins from the blood. She made enough for everyone in the settlement to drink.

When Diennu and Ludia returned from the hunt. There were two Sisters from the Red Hills Clan that had followed them. They kept at a safe distance, and asked how they could help? Krillgan asked them if they could loan them a tent, some clean clothes, and some basic supplies. Mother Andriel told them what garments they needed and the quantity and sizes. They called back to say that they first needed to check with their Mother. They did not anticipate that there would be a problem. Krillgan thanked them, and asked them to convey to her, the greetings from their Mother.

Mother Andriel had Diennu fetch some fresh water. Then she helped Ludia set the meat for roasting. After they brought the wooden bathtub to the top of the hill, and some soap. Krillgan grabbed a pail, and asked directions to where the fresh water was. He then instructed them that they need to bring everything out of the settlement to be burnt. They should start with the wooden furniture and clothing. Then all of the foodstuff, and everything else, including wooden cupboards. The people were not happy. Everything they had was made by someone from the settlement. Everything had a purpose, and a memory. The work of their fathers and forefathers was about to go up in smoke.

When Krillgan returned with a pail of water, he put it in the bathtub. Then he took a brush and the homemade soap. Krillgan knew from what Mother had taught him that there was not very much that can grow on the soap that was made on Dathomir. It was probably the only thing in the settlement that was not contaminated by the mold. As he scrubbed the tub, a green scum formed in the soapy water. Krillgan ignored it as he kept scrubbing. One of the children watching him, asked him what the green stuff in the soapy water was. Krillgan told him that it was mold that had started growing on the wooden bathtub. He told the child that he was cleaning the tub, because everyone had that stuff growing on their skin, and they needed to take a bath to wash it off. The child asked him if that was what was making everyone sick. Krillgan told him it was, then continued to scrub the tub. When the rest of the children came over to watch what he was doing, the first child told them what the purple stranger told him. After Krillgan finished cleaning the inside of the tub. He flipped it upside down, and cleaned the outside.

When Andriel had the second pot of water boiling, she made more of the detoxifying tea. This time she made enough for them to have as well as the people from the settlement. She told everyone that after they go pee, they need to see the purple young man.

After Krillgan had cleaned the tub completely he filled it with water. He then threw force fireballs at the water in the tub to try and heat it up quickly. This had everyone's attention, because they have never seen that before.

Mother Andriel rescued some bed sheets from the pile of debris the adults were bringing up, out of their home. She asked Krillgan to soak the sheets with soapy water. He needs to build a blind to put around the tub. People need their privacy while bathing.

"We are not all like Sisters."

Krillgan took the hint, and did as he was told.

Soon the people from the settlement started coming up to Krillgan. They whispered the instructions the red lady had given them. Krillgan told the adults to place their hands in his, then look him in the eyes. He watched as their eyes became clearer, as their bodies forced what was left of the mold inside of them out. When he told them that he was finished they were surprised at how much better they felt. They asked him what he did. He told them that he had helped their bodies rid themselves of the mold inside of them. They assumed that he used the force to do that, because they had seen him hurl fireballs at the bathtub.

When the children came up to him, he asked them to pull his finger. They would always ask him if he was going to make a noise if they did that, because adults always make a noise when you pull their finger. He told them that he might. So they pulled his finger. When they didn't hear a noise. They asked him if something was wrong. He told them that maybe he was broken, then asked them to try another one. After they had pulled all his fingers. He asked them how they felt. They told him that they were feeling better. He told them that that was good, they don't need to pull his fingers anymore.

The children thought he was a strange man, but they liked him. Mother Andriel started cutting off pieces of roasted meat and stuck them on small wooden sticks and passed them around for everyone to eat.

A caravan from the Red Hills Clan showed up with everything they had asked for. The Clan Mother herself came out to meet them. She promised them that they will help them anyway they can. She told the leaders of the settlement that this was just one neighbour helping another. They set the tent up where Mother Andriel told them. She then explained what everyone was supposed to do, to minimise the chance of spreading the mold contamination. They were going to start by bathing the pregnant young lady. When she was finished they would need to come over and dry her and dress her in clean clothes, then take her to the tent. Then they will bathe the children. After all the children, they will bathe all the adult females. Andriel told them that she, Ludia, and Diennu would be part of that group. After that it would be the men's turn. With Krillgan being the last. After he has finished, everything has to be moved to the rubbish pile, without being touched, and burnt. Everyone understood what they were supposed to do. Andriel went in to help the pregnant young lady bathe. She made sure that she gave her hair a go scrubbing.

When she was finished. Andriel signalled for the Sisters to come for the young lady. She helped her out of the tub, but only used the hand that she had helped wash her with. She told her not to touch anything else. When the young lady looked back at the bathtub, she asked if the green stuff had come off of her. Andriel told her yes, and it was making her and her baby sick. She thanked Mother Andriel for coming when she did.

While Andriel was washing the children, Diennu and Ludia gave their Rancor a good scrubbing, and told them to wait with Strongman. They asked them why he wasn't being scrubbed. They told them that Krillgan had not ridden him after they had all become dirty. The Rancor accepted that, and went to wait for them. While the men were taking their turns in the Bathtub. The Brackaset showed up for their evening milking. They were a bit skittish, because they could smell Rancor, and there were a lot more humans in the area than normal. But they were looking for their humans. When the women saw them they asked if it was okay for them to come into the tent with them. Andriel did not see any reason why not, they had refused to go into the moldy hole in the ground. The women asked the Clan Mother if they had any containers that would hold milk. The Clan Mother checked with her Sisters. They were able to find a few containers. So the ladies milked their Brackaset.

The Clan Mother asked them for the milk, she would have some Sisters take it to one of their farming villages and exchange it for some cheese. The women agreed to that arrangement, because they had nothing that they could do with it except drink it. The Brackaset were content to stay in the tent with their humans. The humans were happy to have them back with them. Not everything was lost.

When the bonfire was started, the Clan Mother met with Mother Andriel, Krillgan and the leaders of the settlement to plan their next move. The Clan Mother offered to help them build a new home. The people of the settlement where hoping to salvage the old one. The Clan Mother looked at Krillgan, she whispered, "You're the Builder's son. Can you do anything for them?"

"I can try."

With that she returned to her main village. She left a couple of Sisters with them in case they needed help. Krillgan wished his father was there. He always had good ideas. He drew the settlement on the ground the way he remembered it. He asked the people if his drawing was accurate. They told him it looked good. He told them that the first thing they have to change is the entrance way to the settlement. The way it is now, the flood waters push themselves into the settlement. He then drew a separate drawing of how he thought the entrance should look like. It was like it had a protecting wall running along the wall of the hill. With the opening into the wall downstream of where the entrance to the settlement was. He told them that if they changed the entrance way, to look like this. The rushing flood water would actually pull any water that was in the entrance way out with it. The people where interested in what Krillgan was saying, and it would be an easy alteration to do.

He then asked them, what the highest level the flood waters has ever reached, in the settlement? One of the adults stood up and indicated how high up the flood waters came on her body. They reached her hip. Krillgan said that looks like about a meter to him. The other elders agreed. Krillgan asked if they could build a ramp into the entrance way that first went about a meter and half up than turned and came back down. It would make it harder to carry things into the settlement. But it would supply added protection against the floodwaters. One of the leaders said they could not do it right at the entrance way, because of the slope of the hill itself. But he showed on Krillgan's first drawing where they could do it. The other leaders agreed. Krillgan told them, that he noticed, that they did not have good air circulation through the settlement. Which meant that when one person became ill, chances are, everyone else will become ill shortly after. What he proposed was they build a chimney right at the very back. They should place an oil lamp in it, and keep it lit day and night. The heated air around the lamp will go up the chimney because hot air rises. This will create a drop in air pressure at the base of the chimney causing air to flow all the way from the front entrance to the back of the settlement. This way they will always have fresh air flowing through the settlement. One of the adults asked if the pirates could spot the heat being given off by the lamp. Krillgan said that they could if they were directly overhead. But the heat given off would be less than what a human body gives off. They would probably think that they stumbled across some creature's den, and move off.

The next morning, while most of the people of the settlement sifted through the ashes of the bonfire. To see what they could find that was salvageable, like pots, pans, utensils, and tools. All of them metal components with their wooden handles burnt off. Krillgan outlined his strategy for rebuilding the settlement with their leaders. First they need to start by building a fire right in the entrance way. Once that area was purified, they could push the fire in further while the settlement starts rebuilding the entrance way to deflect the rushing flood waters. The fire needed to be maintained at a very hot temperature, but not necessarily very big.

"Because of the lack of air circulation, you don't want the fire choking itself out."

Then they would have to start all over again. For Krillgan, Ludia, and Diennu, it meant using the fourth element. Wind and fire, the least understood and most difficult to control. After they have finished rebuilding the front entrance way, the next priority is the chimney at the back. Hopefully the settlement would have been purified by then, and cooled down enough that they can start working at the back.

It is only after the chimney is built and an airflow established that they can start moving back into the settlement. Mother Andriel suggested that they try and coax the Brackaset into the settlement first. If they are willing to go in, then they know that it is safe for everyone else.

As the meeting was ending, a dust covered child approached the people of the settlement, then collapsed. The people ran for the Sisters.

They ran out to the child, and Mother Andriel picked her up and cradled her in her arms. Krillgan had gone and fetched some fresh water. After they made the child drink, Mother Andriel started washing her face, and she revived. She begged them, with tears in her eyes, to please come to their settlement and help them. "A Kamurith had attacked our herd of Brackaset. My father had gone out to try and drive the creature away, using the fire harden wooden spears that the Sisters taught them to make. The Kamurith would not back down, and attacked my father. It had chewed up his left leg pretty bad, and was starting to drag him away when my mother grabbed another spear and charged it, impaling it in its side. The creature ran away but it is badly wounded. We have no one in our settlement that can help father with his wounds. Everyone is also worried that the Kamurith will come back and kill them all."

The four of them quickly conversed. Mother Andriel did not want to leave the pregnant young lady. She could give birth at any moment. They could send one of the Sisters that has stayed to help them, to go get a healer from her clan to come help her. Diennu was the best with the fire element, so she should stay to supervise the purifying of the settlement. They had to burn all of the healing herbs they had brought with them, because they were contaminated, so Krillgan was their only healer. They would need a warrior to deal with the wounded Kamurith. So Ludia would have to go as well. She would also have to help Krillgan with the healing. Then Krillgan would have to help her track down, and kill the wounded beast.

Ludia took the young girl up on her Rancor. While they were riding, Krillgan explained to Ludia what she would have to do. Since he could not touch the man, until he was ready to be healed.

The little girl could not understand what they were talking about. Why couldn't the guy touch her father?

As they were riding, Krillgan spotted a plant he recognised, in what may have been a riverbed. He was actually surprised to see it here. This was not its normal habitat. He would have expected to see it in a swamp. He could make a narcotic out of this plant. There was a high chance of addiction for a healthy person to consume it. But for a man in great pain, and Krillgan believed he was, it would help dull the pain. The plant had gone to seed. So Krillgan scattered the seeds after he picked the plant. Someday another healer might need it.

When they arrived at the settlement, it was the one where they dug into a canyon wall, Krillgan examined the patient. He had claw marks on a number of places of his body from the Kamurith. Some on both forearms, and a gash on the upper thigh of the leg that was bitten. But the worst was the bite mark itself. The lower leg look like the flesh had been shredded, and at least one bone had been crushed. When Krillgan used the force to see it, he saw that the other bone was broken in two places. Krillgan was sure that the breaks would line up with the width of the Kamurith's jaw.

The man's wife told Krillgan that she had washed his body the best that she could. But she was afraid to wash the wound, and only washed away the surface blood. Krillgan suspected from the smell that an infection had entered the wound. So they would need to wash the wound with a mild antiseptic. He could see some dead flesh, which didn't surprise him from the amount of tearing. The flesh on the foot itself still looked alive, so some blood was getting down to it. Krillgan believed that by some miracle, neither a large artery, nor a major vein, had been severed. Or he would have bled out by now.

The next thing he did, was extract the narcotic from the plant he picked. He made it into a drinkable solution, and gave the man a sip, because he was still conscience. He put Ludia in charge of the solution. He told her not to give more than one sip to the man in any hour, no matter how much he begs her. The solution will dull the pain, not get rid of it. He told her that if she gives him more than a sip, there is a chance he might get addicted. Krillgan believed that there were four sips left, which gave him five hours maximum with all his preparations. He asked the wife if they have any plants that grew nearby, that had a medicinal benefit. The lady said she did not know of any, or they would have harvested them. Krillgan knew he could make an alkaline solution out of the ash in their cooking stove. But it might be too strong and burn the flesh. He asked the wife if they make tea out of any of the plants in the area. His mother had taught him that most teas are acidic. A mild acid wash might be the way to go. She told him that there are berry bushes nearby, and they make a tea from its leaves. Krillgan grabbed a big pot and told her to lead the way.

When she pointed out the bushes. Krillgan reached in and started picking the oldest leaves. She told him not to do that, or the tea will be very bitter. Krillgan told her that the tea was not for drinking. It would be used to wash the wound. The bitterness in the leaves is what he wanted. She went to another bush and started picking old leaves to help him. Krillgan sighed, too bad it wasn't berry season. This would have been a much more enjoyable task.

When the pot was two-thirds full. Krillgan told her they had enough, and asked her to take him to their source of water. She took him to a pool of water. As he suspected, they had a seasonal source. Spring water would have been healthier for washing the wounds. He put enough water in the pot that it would not run over when it came to a boil. When they arrived back at their apartment in the settlement, the wife rekindled the stove. She used dark chunks of something that looked round in shape, as a fuel source. He asked her, what was she using? She told him it was Brackaset dung.

Krillgan told her that they were going to need a lot of light for when they start washing, and setting the bones in the wound. She went to all of her neighbours and borrowed every lamp they would give her. Because she had their lamps, they felt that this gave them permission to stand at the doorway and watch. While they were waiting for the water to boil, Krillgan went back to the pool of water with another pot. He let the berry leaves boil for a number of minutes, because he wanted the tea to be as strong as possible.

After he thought it was ready, he took the pot off the stove. He asked her how they were going to strain the leaves out. She went to her neighbour who was at her door, and asked if she could borrow her large pot. She then sent another neighbour to go get a clean piece of cloth that they used for making cheese. When they both came back, she told the healer to pour the contents of the one pot into the other, through the cheese cloth. The audience gasped when they realised that he was not touching the hot pot full of tea. The hard part was pouring it slowly, so he did not splash scalding hot tea on the lady.

After all the tea was poured out, the lady put the cloth with the berry leaves aside. She then took the now empty pot and gave it to her neighbour as exchange for the one she borrowed. Krillgan now tried doing two things at once. He held the big pot with the boiling hot tea, using the force. At the same time he tried making a water shield from the smaller pot that he had filled with water. When Ludia saw what he was doing, she told him to concentrate on the big pot of water, she would control the water shield. She formed the shield and set it horizontally. Krillgan rested the big pot of tea on it, holding it in place. The woman asked him what they were doing. He told her that they were cooling the pot of tea down to a temperature, where they can safely handle it and not burn her husband. He knew from personal experience that water shields are very cold, and very slippery.

Ludia, had to concentrate very hard to keep the shield from melting. Every once and a while he would ask the wife to put her hand over the pot, and tell him if she could feel the heat coming up off of the tea. Each time she did, she told him it was less than before. Finally she said she could not feel it. Krillgan grabbed the pot with his hands, and told Ludia that she can put the water back in the pot. She let the shield collapse back into the smaller pot, allowing some of it to splash around it. Krillgan knew she must be fatigued to have done that. He put the pot down and came up to her from behind, placing his hands where her neck comes from her shoulders. He cannot have her fatigued. Not now when the most delicate part of the work needs to be done. He used his hands to gently rub that big muscle, at the same time transmitting some of his energy to her using the force. He asked her, if she felt better? She smiled at him and told him much better. They then took all the lamps the woman had borrowed from her neighbours, and lit them, placing them around the wounded leg, to try to give light without shadows. The wife had given Krillgan a clean washcloth, which he put into the tea. He then brought the pot of tea and placed it next to the man's knee. He then told Ludia, how she needs to wash the wounds.

When she had finished, Krillgan took a sniff of the wounded leg. All he could smell was the bitter tea. He hoped that meant that the entire wound was clean. Krillgan then reached out to the man with the force, and slowed the man's heart right down. This made the man go unconscious. Krillgan told her that she will now need to work, as quickly as possible, because it is not good to leave him in this state for too long. He did it because this next phase will be too painful, causing him to have spasmodic movement, as the body tries to protect itself.

The first thing she needed to do was cut away all the dead flesh. Right now it was only in their way. He told her that it was okay to cut away some of the healthy flesh with it. He knew that her mother had given her a pair of Dathomirite daggers before they left. So she had the right tool for this job. When she finished that. Krillgan told her that she now needed to stretch the man's leg, until the broken fragments of the lower bone line up properly. She asked him, how she will know that. He told her he would tell her. He touched her to strengthen her, at the same time he used the force to let him see the bone. What they did not know, was because he was touching her, she saw a faint image of what he saw. So when the bones lined up as she stretched his leg, she asked if it was okay to relax the leg now. He told her it was, and asked her how she knew. She told him it was because she somehow saw a faint image of the bone. Krillgan removed his hand and asked her if she could see it now. She said she could not. He touched her again and asked her if she could see it. She said that as soon as he touched her, she could see it.

Krillgan tucked this knowledge away, it could be useful in the future.

Krillgan told her, that the next part of what she must do, will take a lot of concentration. She needs to take the pieces of shattered bone and put them back together like a puzzle. It will help the man heal faster. Krillgan started pacing behind her. Every once and a while he would gently touch her. The wife noticed, and asked him what he was doing. He told her that what Ludia was now doing is very fatiguing, so he was sharing some of his strength with her, so that she could continue to concentrate without growing tired. She asked him why he was walking back and forth. He told her that he needed to do something. She asked him why he wasn't doing this work. He told her, that it would not be beneficial to her husband right now. With the type of healing he will be performing, if Ludia sets everything up properly, he should be able to fully restore her husband's leg. She asked him, what other type of healing was there? He told her that most healers would have amputated her husband's leg at the knee, because they could not do anything more for him.

The wife did not say that this was what she thought they would do. But if he thinks he can restore her husband's leg, then she was not going to interfere. Obviously this clan Sister helping him, believes in him, or she would not be helping him. She knew that he was a trained force user. She knew that traditionally, trained male force users were also healers. Maybe male healers could heal in different ways than female healers.

When Ludia said she was finished, Krillgan looked over her shoulder to see how she had down. He told her that she had done excellent work. The only thing left to do was to lay the flesh flat, then let him take over.

When she finished. Krillgan blew out all the lamps, and gave them to the woman. He told her they did not need a lot of light for this next part. "Let the neighbours know that we are extremely grateful." He sat down next to the man and placed a hand just below the knee. He started increasing the man's heart rate because he needed his blood to take the Kolto where it was needed. He increased his heart rate slowly, hoping the man would stay unconscious. The last thing he needed right now, was for the man to move in any way.

Krillgan was also hoping, that the man's body would knit the bones back together before restoring the flesh. The sooner the bones where healed, the better the odds for complete healing. When Krillgan smelt that the man had soiled himself, he would call over the first person he would see to clean him up. Since there were no lamps near Krillgan, all the neighbours had gone home, because there was nothing new for them to see.

The wife made dinner when Krillgan took over. Ludia had to feed him his dinner, since he could only use one hand. He had instructed the wife to burn the pieces of dead flesh in her stove until they were ash. Ludia had taken the tea she used for washing the wounds and dumped it in a field, because it now contained blood. The pot got a good scrubbing when she returned. She asked him what they do next. He told her that they will need to take shifts being awake through the night. He can only remove his hand for short periods of time, like when he has to go to the bathroom. Otherwise he needs to keep his hand where it is, even when he is sleeping. He told Ludia to go rest, as he was taking the first shift.

There was only one bed in the apartment, and the little girl had been sleeping on it, since they arrived at the settlement. When her mother and the nice lady who let her ride her Rancor laid down next to her, she woke up. She found the purple man in the kitchen with her father. Since he was just sitting there, she thought it would be safe to talk with him. She pulled up a chair next to him. Krillgan told her where her mother left some dinner for her, in case she was hungry. Actually the woman had left it for Krillgan. When the girl came out of the bedroom, Krillgan believed she would be hungry, so he offered it to her. She went and got the plate, and sat back down on the chair. She asked him how come he was purple. He told her that he really wasn't purple. He told her that he has a red layer of fur, but if you push some of the fur aside, you will see blue skin. He held out his one arm so that she could see. It was dark in the kitchen, so when she pushed some of the fur aside, she just saw it was dark underneath. She believed it was blue because he had no reason to lie to her. After eating some more food, she asked him, what was he doing? He told her that he was healing her father. She wanted to know how. He told her that he cannot tell her. All he can tell her is that he has a special gift, and he was using the gift to heal her father. She asked him, if it was painful? He told her that her father was the only one who was in pain. Then she thought she should ask him if he can talk and heal at the same time. If not she was in big trouble. He told her that these two things he can do at the same time. There are other things that he cannot do at the same time. She asked, what was that? He told her that he could not whistle and sing at the same time. He could only do one at a time. She sat there sitting and eating, for a long time wondering if she could whistle and sing at the same time. By the time she finished eating, she decided that she could only do one at a time. She than asked him how long it was going to take him to finish healing her father. He told her that he did not know. He had never healed anyone who was injured so badly before. She told him that she was feeling tired, and wanted to go back to sleep. As she slipped of her chair. Krillgan told her that it was important for her to get her rest, if she wants to grow up into a beautiful young lady. She asked him what makes him think she was going to be beautiful. Krillgan told her that beauty starts in the heart, and she has a beautiful heart. She asked him about the nice lady that let her ride with her on her Rancor, was she beautiful? Krillgan told her that she has a beautiful heart, and is a very beautiful person. The little girl thought so too, and went back to bed with a full tummy.

After Krillgan and Ludia left with the little girl, the one Sister was sent back to her clan to get a healer. Diennu and the other Sister each took a person from the settlement to the closest wooded area, which was within the town's territory. They made a second trip to bring two more. The people they brought where instructed to collect all of the fallen branches, and to make two piles. One would be for the branches that should be burnt. The other pile would be for the branches they can use, to replace the wooden handles on all their tools. After the second trip, the Sister continued on to the town to let them know what they were up to. In case they had any objections.

Right after all the Sisters had first left. The young lady that Andriel had been keeping an eye on, her water broke, and her contractions started. Before a healer had arrived from the Red Hills Clan, Andriel had delivered a healthy baby girl. This was a great thrill for Andriel, since this was the very first baby she had delivered on her own. What she did not know was that all the women from the settlement that were with her, were more experienced in delivering babies. Since they had delivered each other's babies. They let her take charge, because in their eyes, she was a healer.

They asked afterwards what she would do in the situation where the baby had not turned before delivery, because they had encountered this a few times. She told them that this was something she has never encountered, because there were always Sisters with her that could use the force to turn the baby. The male healer had made sure the baby was in the proper position for delivery before he left for the other settlement. They told her that when a baby is born butt first, there is always a great risk that the umbilical cord can get caught under the baby's chin during delivery, and cut off the blood supply going to its head, causing brain damage. They don't have the use of the force to prevent that.

Andriel told them that when her mother started teaching her their traditions. She mentioned that a good midwife, knew how to massage around the edge of the belly to get the baby to turn to the right position. This can be done right up until the time the water broke and the contractions started. After that, only the force could be used to turn the baby. The women thanked her for sharing that. Now they knew that they had a chance to force the baby to turn before it was too late. Now they believed that she really was a healer to know this. Because none of the Sisters that helped them with deliveries, told them they could do it.

Diennu asked one of the people that were with her in the woods, to show her which tree would have the best wood for making a new bathtub. They told her that it was best if it was the wood of a resinous tree. That way after the bathtub was put together. They could heat the wood, and the resin will come to the surface, and form a waterproof barrier.

After walking through the woods for a period of time, the person pointed out a tree to Diennu. That tree has the right type of wood that would make a good bathtub.

Diennu cut it down at the base with one swipe of her Dathomirite sword. She had Protector drag it to the settlement while she ran along to make sure he did not accidentally drag it through one of their fields.

When they arrived back at the settlement, she trimmed off all of its branches. They would be perfect for the fire she needs to build. Then she used her sword to cut the tree trunk into long boards. One of the leaders that was there, when she found out what the wood was for, asked her to cut up one of the outside boards into small sections. While she did that the leader told Diennu that they could now use these pieces as plates, until they have time to carve out proper plates later.

When Diennu went back to the woods. Diennu suggested to the Sister that they go hunting together so that they had enough meat for the people of the settlement, and for their Rancor. The Sister agreed.

While they were hunting, they came across a lot of wild Brackaset, but did not kill any, because they did not know how the people of the settlement would react to that. After hunting, they went and took the two piles of wood to the Settlement. This way they had wood to cook the wild game the Sisters had killed, and they had wood to start remaking their tools.

When they went back to retrieve the people they left at the woods. Both Sisters asked their Rancor if they would be okay if they each carried two of the people from the settlement on their backs, while they ran along beside them. This way they would only need to make one trip, and they could all start eating when they returned to the settlement. The Rancor where hungry, so they agreed to what the Sisters asked them.

What they did not know, was that someone was watching them. The Nightsister that Diennu had scared out of the town, did not return to the Glass Mountain, she was afraid that she would be whipped in the temple for being a failure. She did not get too close, because she was afraid that Diennu would detect her and kill her. So she was always scrambling when she saw any of the clan Sisters on the move. She had figured out that something bad had happened to the settlement, because the Sisters from the Red Hills Clan had brought a tent and were helping them. She was forced to stay too far away, so had not seen the male Sister all day. When she smelt the meat cooking in the wind she assumed that they were returning for the night. So she did her own hunting and caught some small creatures. Biting their heads off and drinking their blood before ripping them open, eating their meat. She could not afford the luxury of building a fire. She just made sure she did not rest where she had eaten, because predators would be attracted to the remains. Predators can be quite a nuisance when you're trying to sleep.

During dinner the settlement leaders went up to Diennu. They told her that she was building a burden of debt for them, far greater than they, or their children could ever hope to repay. Diennu told them that they must be mistaken. There was no debt. The Singing Mountain Clan was only offering them their services which their years of paying tribute demanded of them. Her Clan Mother was very serious about making sure that they help the settlements in any way they could, because of all the years they have payed tribute. So if anyone owes anyone anything, the Singing Mountain Clan is obliged to help them for many years to come.

The leaders of the settlement were very pleased with what they heard. This was not charity from the Singing Mountain Clan, it was a service being offered for the fees they have prepaid. They asked Diennu about the Red Hills Clan's involvement in all this. Diennu told them that the Red Hills Clan has always been a close ally of theirs, so any debt for their involvement is between the Singing Mountain Clan and the Red Hills Clan, and does not concern them. The leaders went back to tell all their people the good news. There is no debt, all this help is because they have been faithful in paying tribute each year for generations. Their forefathers have covered this debt for them.

After the leaders left, the Sister from the Red Hills Clan went up to Diennu. She was impressed by how she was able to handle the leaders and absolve them of any debt. She never would have thought of any of that. Diennu told her that she cannot take any credit for that. Her Clan Mother had made it clear to them, what the clan's responsibility is to the settlements, she basically told them what her Mother had told her. Still the Sister was very impressed by her, and feel's honoured to be given the opportunity to work with her.

It was after dinner, when Diennu and the Sister went to check on Mother Andriel, that they found out about the baby. She told them that the parents wanted to name the baby Andriel after her. They were pleased to hear that her name means princess.

Ludia woke up when her internal alarm clock told her that it was her turn to keep an eye on things. She made her way carefully off of the bed, not wanting to disturb mother or daughter. When she came out to the kitchen she told Krillgan, he can rest now. She will look after things. He reminded her that if the father starts moving around, she must restrain him using the force, no matter how much he struggles. When he comes to, he probably will not understand what is going on. In his confusion he will try to get away. Ludia politely reminded him that he has already told her all these things, a number of times. So he needs to put his head down and get some rest. She will restrain him if she has to, so that he will keep his hand on his patient. Krillgan smiled and put his head down. She definitely was in charge.

When she heard his breathing become shallow and steady, she believed he was already asleep. She stroked her fingers through his hair. Which he enjoyed. Then she whispered, "Krillgan, I love you!" That was the last thing he heard while he drifted off to sleep.

Krillgan wanted to tell her that he loved her, but he only said it in his dreams. In the morning when the woman came out of the bedroom to start making breakfast, Krillgan partially woke up, because he had detected life movement nearby. He did not fall back asleep, he only rested.

The mother made Ludia and herself some tea while she cooked their meal. She commented that Krillgan must have been hungry last night because the plate of food she left him was empty. Ludia told her she did not think it was Krillgan. She pointed out that someone had moved a chair to sit next to him. The mother asked Ludia if she was in love with him. Ludia asked her if it was that obvious. The mother told her, only to someone who has been in love herself. Then she asked her if he loves her. She told her that he did, but he also loves someone else. The mother said that that was okay that he loved two of them, doesn't clan law allow for that? Ludia told her that it wasn't that simple. He comes from a heritage where it is one man and one woman for life in marriage. When he was old enough, he committed himself to stay celibate until he marries. She did the same, because she wanted to marry him. The mother said, let me guess, the other woman did as well. Ludia said yes. She asked Ludia about the other woman. Ludia told her that she is the best friend that she has in the world. They were best friends before Krillgan came into their lives. They are cousins, but their relationship is more like sisters. When he came along, they both just absorbed him into their group. After that it had always been the three of them. They have had wonderful times together. The mother said life can be complicated.

"What if he chooses her over you?"

"I love them both so very much. I would not stand in their way. I will give them my blessing, and start looking for someone else. I know it will be hard, because there is no one like him."

The mother told her, "I have nothing against your cousin, and I am sure you both love her. But I have seen you with him, so I hope he chooses you. From what you have said, your cousin will be just as gracious, and will bless the two of you."

Because Krillgan was only resting, he heard the whole conversation. He knew that if he moved now, it would give him away, and Ludia will be upset and hurt, and he did not want that.

At that moment the little girl came into the kitchen. She thanked her mother for putting aside some dinner for her last night. She was really hungry when she woke up. The mother asked her, "What makes you think that I left it for you?"

The little girl pointed at Krillgan, and said, "He said you did."

Then she looked at Ludia. "He thinks you're beautiful."

Ludia turned red, and asked her, "What makes you think that?"

"He told me."

"Why did he tell you?"

"Because I asked him."

Ludia decided it was time to wake Krillgan up, because breakfast was ready. So she gave him a little shake.

"Wakeup sleepyhead."

Krillgan lifted his head and tried to make his voice sound groggy, "Are we there yet?"

The little girl giggled. He's a strange man, but she likes him.

Krillgan whispered to Ludia, "I do think you're beautiful."

Ludia turned even redder than she was before. "How much did you hear?"

"I heard the little girl say that I think you're beautiful."

Krillgan did not say anymore, and Ludia was afraid to ask.

Breakfast was about the same as dinner. They take grain and roast it. After it is cooled down, they remove its husk. Then they boil it for their meal. Sometimes they add some herbs to change its taste. Along with this they serve a chunk of cheese. You can either stir the cheese into the boiled grain where it will melt and make a tasty but gooey mixture, or you can eat them separately. Krillgan preferred them mixed.

After breakfast he checked the wound. The bones where knitting together nicely. The father was not in as great a risk as he was before.

Krillgan asked the patients wife, how long has he been lying on his back? She said, "Since he was carried in here."

Krillgan told Ludia, that they have to flip him onto his belly for a while, or he will get sores. When they picked him up using the force. His wife asked them to hold him there. She removed the quilt from the kitchen table that he had been resting on, because it had blood and tea stains on it. Then she ran into the bedroom, and snatched the quilt that was on the bed. She folded it into three, and placed it on the kitchen table, to be his new mattress. When they turned him over and put him down. Krillgan started massaging his back. They let him rest on his front for about an hour, before turning him again to lie on his back. They started doing this for him twice a day. Which was also good for Krillgan, because he had a chance to get up and move around while giving the massage.

Diennu had to enlist the help of the two Sisters from the Red Hills Clan, for purifying the settlement with fire. She told them what Krillgan had proposed they do. Since neither he nor Ludia where there to help her, she would need their help. The Sisters wanted to build a really big fire at the entrance. She told them that Krillgan said to keep it small but hot. Besides the bigger the fire, the more fuel they would need to get, and the harder it would be to control. She reminded them that it would be the perfect opportunity to practise their fire element.

After they pushed the fire further into the settlement. The people started building the new wall to protect their entrance from the flood waters.

Diennu and the Sisters found that they had to keep down moving on all fours, to stay in the cool airflow they were using to fuel the fire, while they brought the wood they needed to place on the fire, and to move the fire around. The heat radiating off the cooked walls in the settlement was stifling. They also found that they had to consume large amounts of fluids. They sent the healer to bring them some kegs of new ale, because Mother Andriel told them that drinking straight water was not good for their stomachs.

The people in the settlement were disappointed, when they found out that the new ale was only for the Sisters. Whenever one of the Sisters would come out of the settlement, drenched, and steam rising from their bodies. The people wondered if they were bathing in it, inside the settlement.

It was only after the settlement was purified, and the front wall was finished, that they were able to experience a little of what the Sisters experienced. They had to negotiate the settlement on all fours to get to where they needed to start building the new chimney. If they stood, they would easily be overcome by heat. This was after the settlement had a few days to cool down.

Krillgan called Ludia to him. He told her that the creatures inside of him had stopped producing the healing oil, and he wasn't even halfway to finish healing the patient. Ludia asked him how she could help. Krillgan told her that he needs more nutrients in his diet than what he was getting from the settlement's food. It was filling, but he needed more variety. Fruits and vegetables would be nice. It was too bad they did not have any new ale. It has tons of nutrients. He would even drink it warm, though it tastes awful that way. When she goes hunting with the Rancor, it would be nice if they let him have the internal organs, like the liver, because they always have more nutrients than just the flesh.

Two things struck Ludia at once. First she had forgotten completely about the Rancor. Second he was asking for foods he did not like. She asked him, how much time before he uses up all the reserves of kolto in him? He told her anywhere from an half an hour to an hour, before he was completely spent. Ludia went to the patient's wife and tried to explain the situation to her. She told her that Because of the healing technique Krillgan uses, he needs a high amount of various nutrients in his system, which he uses to transmit to her husband, so his body can rebuild. In a short time he will not be able to help her husband anymore. She asked what that meant. She told him that if Krillgan cannot finish healing his leg, the only option left is to cut it off. There is no such thing as a partial healing. She told the wife all the things Krillgan would need to eat and drink to help him get back on track. She was going to the Rancor to go hunting, to get the meat items Krillgan had mentioned. Now, the settlement had a supply of items that they kept on hand for special occasions. She knew that there was at least a half a keg of new ale hidden somewhere. There were dried fruits and berries. Some of the people kept some of their favorite herbs hid away. There were seeds from wild plants that they use on occasion. She needed the settlement' full cooperation if her husband was to walk again.

She told them of the healer's predicament. Basically she said that they had to treat him as if he was pregnant and nursing a child at the same time. Only it was her husband he was nursing, and she wants him to walk again. The people of the settlement knew how strong of a contributor he was to their community.

Because of his quick action, the Brackaset are still giving milk. It was only the two that were initially attacked that did not give any milk, since they were too traumatised. The clincher was when the wife said that he was so desperate for nutrients that he was willing to drink a glass of warm new ale. Only a pregnant, nursing mother was that desperate.

They poured Krillgan a glass of new ale. It was warm because they did not have a chance to chill it. They gave it to the wife to give to him, and they all went to watch from the doorway.

Krillgan thanked her, he was so desperate for nutrients. He chugged it down quickly, in an effort not to taste it. The people were satisfied. They opened up their meagre supply of special foods for him.

Ludia was a bit ashamed of herself for forgetting completely about the Rancor. She apologised to them. Strongman told her that My Friend thought that the injury to the man must be very bad, because they did not come out and say something.

"So she said we have to hunt for ourselves. She told me that we cannot hunt Brackaset, because we did not know which ones were friends with the humans, so we hunted other game. She is a very good hunter, we did not go hungry. We even have some to share if you want some." Ludia told them that Krillgan needs something from inside the game animal, because he was not getting enough of the right foods to eat in the settlement. My Friend looked at Strongman, "It's for Krillgan. You know how good he is to all of us."

Strongman left and came back with a lobe of liver. He said he was saving it for later, but if it can help Krillgan, than he can have it. Ludia wanted to hug and kiss both Rancor. This meant a lot to her. They could tell because they saw the tears in her eyes when she thanked them. She ran back to the apartment in the settlement. She found him munching on dried fruit and berries. She told Krillgan not to fill up on that because she has something good for him, and showed him the piece of liver. Krillgan said he would rather eat the berries. Ludia told the little girl to take the plate away from him, and not give it back until he finished eating the liver. She asked if she was allowed to have any. Ludia looked at her mother, then said she could have one piece. Krillgan told her not to eat the berries. So she picked a nice big piece of dried fruit and sat down and munched on it while Krillgan looked at her and made faces. Ludia stared at the liver sitting on the cutting board. She did not know what to do with it. She knew it was easy to overcook, than it could be as tough as a Rancor's hide. The wife looked at Ludia, "You're not a cook, are you."

Ludia shook her head no. "Let me show you an easy way to cook it."

She cut the liver into cubes. She took out some flour, herbs, and sea salt, and breaded the liver. She told her daughter to put the dried fruit down, and go get her some fresh Brackaset milk. She also told her not to let anyone see that she is chewing dried fruit, because it is supposed to be for Krillgan. She heated up a skillet, and put a little bit of oil in it, coating the bottom. She then threw all the breaded cubes of liver in it, browning their sides. By this time her daughter returned with the milk. She lifted the skillet off of the heat, and poured some of the milk into it. She told Ludia that two thing were happening at the same time. The milk was cooling down the skillet, so the liver would not be overcooked. The skillet was also bring the milk to a boil, and mixing with the browned breading on the liver, making a nice thick sauce. She but the skillet back on the stove, but on a cooler spot so the sauce only simmered. She covered the skillet, and gave the rest of the milk to her daughter to drink. Her daughter's eyes were bright. Two special treats in one day. All because of the blue and red man.

The little girl asked her mother, if Krillgan can live with them forever?

"What about Ludia?"

"Krillgan really likes her, so she can stay too."

The mother poured the contents of the skillet onto a plate, and told Ludia to be careful. It was still hot. Ludia put a small amount on a spoon, and blew on it to help cool it down, then she fed it to Krillgan. He told her that it actually tastes good. So Ludia tried a little herself. It did taste good, and she knew how to make it.

While she was feeding Krillgan, he told her that the little critters where happy, they had started producing the healing oil again. He also told her about having to drink the warm new ale.

After he finished eating all the liver, the little girl reluctantly gave him back his plate of dried fruit and berries. He wasn't hungry so he just let it sit. The wife told Ludia, that tomorrow at dinner time she can prepare the liver the way she just taught her, and spread it on top of the boiled grain, they go good together. Ludia asked her for another favour. She had been ignoring the Rancor these past few days. Fortunately they have been able to fend for themselves. She would like some help making porridge cakes, because that is what they normally have for breakfast. She told Ludia that if she does the hard work like pounding the grain. She can help her make the cakes.

It was entertaining for Krillgan and the little girl, to watch the two women working together to make the porridge cakes. The next day the man regained consciousness, his leg still hurt but not as bad as before. He could feel that Krillgan was doing something down there. When the settlement heard he was awake, they all wanted to see him. His wife let them in, a few at a time. But only after she covered him and Krillgan's hands, so that they could not see what he was doing. When they asked him how his healing was going, he would tell them to look at the claw marks on his arms. Now they just look like scratches. The ones who carried him in, remembered the bloody mess that he was. They didn't know what the healer was doing, but from what they have seen so far, he was the best healer they have ever met.

It took about five and a half days of Krillgan's constant touching, to fully heal the man. Which is about how long it would have taken if he was immersed in a Kolto tank. When he walked out of the apartment, he was a little shaky on his legs but he was walking. Everyone wanted to see the leg. The children were disappointed that there was not a wicked scar. The adults were quite surprised that there was no noticeable scars. Nothing to indicate he had been mauled by a Kamurith. The only noticeable indication of trauma, was that the leg that was healed was skinnier than the other leg. Krillgan told the family that this would disappear over time, as the man used his legs.

Ludia told them that first thing in the morning, they were going to hunt the Kamurith that did this. Ludia opted to go on foot, and left the Rancor behind. They found that the canyon that the settlement was in, was part of a maze of canyons. They followed the old trail of blood, into a dead end canyon. Inside the canyon they found a den with a wounded female Kamurith guarding it. Inside they could hear a number of creatures. She had a clutch of young. Ludia was reluctant to kill it. She told Krillgan that it was a mother trying to feed her young. Why can't he heal her? Krillgan told her she was a predator that had acquired the taste for human flesh. Which means the man they healed was not her first taste of human. "She was planning to drag him here while he was still alive. To let her young acquire the taste. The whole settlement was going to be prey to her and her young. What chance would the little girl have against such a killer? None. What about the other children in the settlement, they would all be snacks for her little ones."

Ludia drew her bow and took aim at the hissing creature. It was a clean shot, right through the heart. Krillgan reached in with the force, and brought the young out, one at a time, where Ludia used her dagger to dispatch them. She did this, because they had no one to provide for them, they would have just starved to death.

After they had finished their grisly task. Ludia asked if they could burn them. Krillgan told her that in doing so, they might accidentally condemn another family of predators to death. It is better to leave them, so that they can provide sustenance for others. He would not be surprised if by this time tomorrow, all they would find here is some bones. He but his arm around her, to comfort her as they walked back. She may be a tough as nails warrior. But she has a kind, compassionate heart.

Things were progressing well in the rebuilding of the settlement. The men did not like the tunics they were given by the Red Hills Clan after they took their cleansing bath. They thought they were too long for shirts and too short for dresses. So they took the hides of the animals that were used to feed them, and fashioned themselves a crude pair of pants. They cut the tunics back to the length of proper shirts, and gave the excess material to the women. The women used the rags to help them grab the hot cooking pots out of the fire.

When the chimney was finished and the small oil lamp lit. It wasn't long before they felt a gentle flow of air through the settlement. They coaxed the Brackaset to come inside. Once the Brackaset were in, they made themselves at home. So the people knew it was safe to return to the settlement to live.

It was just after they started work on the ramp. The backup protection for the settlement. That the Brackaset bolted, and went to the tent. The people knew that it meant rains were coming, and with the rains came floods.

All the people abandoned the settlement and followed the Brackaset to the tent, this time they brought all their meager possessions with them. After the sun came out, and the ground started to dry, everyone wanted to see how the settlement faired. It was bone dry, even the Brackaset seemed to approve when they returned. In fact, they no longer bolted when the rains came. They were content to stay and munch on the hay the humans had given them, whenever it rained.

With the sun, came the return of Krillgan and Ludia. The people were proud to tell him how well his designs worked. Mother Andriel could hardly wait to introduce them to baby Andriel. Diennu was just happy to see her friends. She was also happy that she had people she could share the burden of leadership with. Krillgan and Ludia had their own adventure stories to share with Diennu and Mother Andriel. After the first harvest, the settlement was back to being fully self-sufficient again. They no longer needed the help of the Sisters. So Diennu, Ludia, Krillgan and Mother Andriel, where escorted by the two Sisters from the Red Hills Clan to their main village.

The first thing Mother Andriel did when they arrived at the village was commandeer the seamstress's shop. Like the men from the settlement she wanted to wear something more substantial than a tunic. The Clan Mother had suspected she might do this, since she had a good reputation as a seamstress herself, and asked them to give her their full cooperation. She did not have to do this, since the seamstresses already knew of her reputation, and were eager to work with her. They had no sewing machine in this village, so Andriel had to coordinate all the seamstresses to function as her sewing machine. She would cut out the fabric, then assign a seamstress to join a seam. She would dictate what stitch pattern would need to be sewn where. The older seamstresses found they were called upon to use patterns they had not used since they were first trained, and forgotten what its purpose was, so had not passed it along. Mother Andriel reminded them of its purpose. So now they knew they would have to train the younger generation in its use, after Mother Andriel left.

Mother Andriel had even designed an outfit for Krillgan. This excited the seamstresses because they had never sewn anything for a man before.

The Tailors complained to the Clan Mother about this, they thought they should have been used to sew the male Sister's garments. She told them that Mother Andriel is a seamstress, not a tailor. She would have felt uncomfortable having to go into the tailor's shop, to have them sew his clothing. After all, she was responsible about how the delegation from the Singing Mountain Clan looked.

When Mother Andriel heard about the complaint, she personally went to the tailor's shop, and apologised to the tailors. She told them that she was thinking about speed of execution, rather than on who was doing it. Since she wanted everyone from the Singing Mountain Clan to be properly dressed as quick as possible.

She left them with a second outfit design for Krillgan. The tailors struggled with the design, because they were not used to making clothes based on a seamstress's design. They ended up going secretly to the seamstresses to get them to come and help them understand the design. The seamstresses thought this was funny, since they were the ones who made the initial complaint. The tailors told them, this is why they were too embarrassed to go to Mother Andriel. Since they had boasted that they could make anything she wanted, if they just had the drawing and measurements. With the cooperation of the seamstresses, they were finally able to finish the outfit.

When the two Sisters that had worked with Diennu, returned. They first reported to their Clan Mother. The Clan Mother called a meeting of all the Sisters and had them repeat the report. As a result of this report, the Sisters of the Red Hills Clan nicknamed Diennu, the "Fire Lady". With their utmost respect.

After the Clan Mother heard the report from her two Sisters, she requested a meeting with the people from the Singing Mountain Clan. She told them that she wasn't concerned with how they looked, she just wanted to get to know them. They knew that their Clan Mother had a very close relationship with the Clan Mother of the Red Hills Clan, so they believed that Krillgan's healing abilities, were fully known to her.

They found her just as easy to talk to, as their own Clan Mother. What they did not know, was they were missing the afternoon nap. The Mother wanted to know how Krillgan came up with his designs for saving the settlement. She also wanted to know about the details of their mercy mission. When she heard how Krillgan almost lost his healing ability, because of the lack of varied nutrients in his diet, while at the canyon settlement. She told him to let her know if he thinks that he might not be getting enough nutrients. He told her he did not think it would be a problem. Ludia now knows a terrific recipe for liver, and mother has wonderful recipes for everything else, he doesn't expect to have any problems.

The Clan Mother talked to them about getting a new medicine pouch, and replenishing it with what the healers had on hand. Because mother was busy with making them new clothing, Krillgan told her that he would rather go out and pick what they need fresh off of the plants, if a local healer can show him where to find the plants. She told him that her healers also prefer to pick what they need off of the plants. It was only the elders that kept reserves of the dried plants. She also told Mother Andriel that she does not have as large a selection of teas, as they seem to have at the Singing Mountain Clan. Andriel told the Mother that a number of the teas she had with her were brought by her to Dathomir when she first came. She had always been fascinated by the healing properties that some common teas seem to have, so she has always maintained a healthy supply, except that they are not common on Dathomir. She did not tell the Mother that she knew someone who could get them for her.

After the meeting, the Clan Mother instructed Krillgan to go stop by the cobblers, and describe the medicine pouch to them, that he would like them to make. He had already promised her some vials of his healing oil, combined with the healing essence of some medicinal plants. It should work just as well as if he was present himself to administer it. He had agreed to let her healers watch him prepare it, in exchange for showing him where to find their medicinal plants.

When Andriel went back to the seamstresses, she was disappointed that they had not completed as much as she had been expecting. At first she wondered if they might not be working as hard, when she was not there. The next afternoon, when they all got up to go home and take a nap, she understood why they had not accomplished as much as she expected the previous day. Was she ever glad, that she had not said anything! She stayed and worked by herself while they were gone. They next day when they went for a nap, Andriel was feeling tired herself. So she also went for a nap.

After visiting the cobblers, some local Sisters found them, and gave them a grand tour of the village. They were all very proud of the windmills the Builder had designed for them. Each village had their own windmill, but the one in the main village was so much bigger, because it supplied power to more things. The added bonus to having a windmill, which the Builder might not have imagined, is that they had started predicting changes in weather, by observing how the wind changed. Krillgan told them that he will let the Builder know this. He was sure he would be pleased to hear about it.

The Sisters knew that Krillgan was a healer, and Ludia was a warrior, but they had not yet heard the training that the Fire Lady has. She told them that she also was a warrior, but that the Singing Mountain Clan has two warrior groups that learn slightly different techniques. It keeps things more competitive, as they both try and prove who has the better techniques. The Sisters from the Red Hills Clan told them that they would love to see some of their different techniques. Both Ludia and Diennu told them they can't. They have been instructed by the Sisters in charge of training. That they are only allowed to show them their basic techniques. The Sisters said that they would be happy to see even that.

Neither Krillgan, nor the girls had had a workout since leaving home, and they all really wanted one, so they agreed to give them a demonstration after dinner. The Sisters from the Red Hills Clan were surprised to see Krillgan join the two warriors on the practise field. They had all been given fighting sticks. When they all said they were ready. The Sisters suddenly saw a flurry of fighting stick movement. Sometimes it was every Sister for herself, sometimes it was two against one, with allegiances switching at a blink of an eye. They knew now, that though Krillgan was a healer, he was also a warrior. He had been given the full Sisters training. After they finished their demonstration. They told the Sisters that they have been playing and training together since they were little children. So each one of them knows something about the other's discipline. So he can call on them to help him prepare medication for a large group of people if the need ever arose. They know that he will protect their backs if it ever came down to a fight.

The Sisters from the Red Hills Clan did not like that they were such a tight group, it will definitely make things harder if they try to establish a relationship with him. They can expect his two friends to interfere. That did not stop a couple of them from coming right out and asking him if he would spend the night with them. He told them that when he came of age he took the pledge to remain celibate until he married. Later other Sisters tried to persuade him to spend the night with them.

Apparently it took a while for word to get around that he was not on the market. Ludia and Diennu were surprised at how brazen the Sisters were.

When they told mother, she told them that Chitrah had the same problem when they first arrived on Dathomir. Some of the Sisters of the Singing Mountain Clan believed that because he was not married on Dathomir under clan law. That the married status did not apply to him. He had to point out that he loved his wife, and was not interested in anyone else. No matter what they believed. Now Ludia, and Diennu were really embarrassed, because they did not think that anyone in their clan, would act like that. Mother Andriel had just shown them, they were wrong.

When word finally got around about Krillgan's status. Sisters still approached him, but these Sisters had also promised to be celibate until they marry. They were hoping that they might make a connection with him. They were disappointed that he was not interested in connecting with them. They suspected that it might have something to do with his two friends always hovering nearby. For the most part, they were well received, and well respected.

The healers were grateful that he intrusted them with the secret of his healing ability. They understood the importance of keeping it from the Nightsisters. They found it also interesting that the strength of his healing oil could be expanded by mixing it with the essential oils of their own medicinal plants.

When the delegation from the Singing Mountain Clan left the settlement, escorted by the two clan Sisters from the Red Hills Clan, the Nightsister decided to talk to the people from the settlement. Now the people were very suspicious of strangers, especially single females that walked around the countryside by themselves, without any fear of attack. They did not believe her when she said she was from the town. They told her that they were not interested in taking in anymore adult females into their community. When she asked them about the purple man that had passed through town on his way here. They told her that he did not spend very much time here. A young girl had come there from the canyon settlement because her father had been mauled by a predator. So he left with one of the Sisters to help them. The Nightsister now knew why she had not seen him for a long stretch of time. The other person she had not seen during that time was the daughter of the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan. They shared their dinner with her because they were still using the fire pit on top of the hill to cook their meals. They told her she could stay in the tent with the young couple and their new baby. They did not want her coming into their settlement and seeing all the changes that Krillgan had them do.

They were very proud of Krillgan, and all the help that he gave them. Normally they would not stop boasting about him. But this was a Nightsister, you do not tell them anything good or bad about someone you care about, because they will find some way to use it against them.

The Nightsister, to be polite, ate the dinner they gave her. Then she went out into the fields and stuck a couple of fingers down her throat to bring it all up. It had no meat in it, and she wanted meat. So she went hunting. When she entered the tent, the young mother thought she smelt blood on her. Their baby was quite a handful that night. Fussing and crying all night long, not giving the couple a moments rest. They were not surprised to see the stranger leave as soon as the sun came up. What did surprise them was that the baby calmed right down after she left, and fell asleep. They also fell asleep right away. When they were awakened to share breakfast. They told everyone what type of night they had. They also told them, that they were moving back into the settlement. They now felt very vulnerable and exposed being in the tent. The people let them know they were welcome. They knew the couple had stayed in the tent because of the baby. When a baby cries in the settlement everyone hears it. They will put up with the crying, knowing that the family feels safe.

When the single female showed up at the canyon settlement, the people there were not happy to see her either. No one invited her into their apartment. The only ones who would talk to her was the family that Krillgan had come to help. They felt obligated to Krillgan to do so. When she asked about the purple man, the young girl tried to correct her, saying he was red and blue, not purple. The Nightsister ignored her, and her parents reminded her that she had chores to do. She left in a bit of a huff. Adults never seem to listen to the truth.

Her parents told the Nightsister about how badly injured the husband was by the Kamurith, and how the purple man spent five and a half days using the force to heal him. They shared this information freely because they were sure she would not believe them.

They were right. Because the Nightsister did not see any major scars, she believed that they greatly exaggerated the extent of his injuries. She thought that maybe it was someone else that was injured, but she had no sense that they were lying to her, or were trying to deceive her. That the only medicine he had used was berry leaf tea was incredible. Had he really discovered a new technique of using the force to heal?

She left the village, and went into the canyon, in the direction they said that they had gone to hunt the creature down. She did not have to go very far to find the only human footprints going to and from the settlement. She followed them to the pile of bones next to an abandoned den. She delighted in what she saw. They slaughtered the creatures with no thought of mercy. Just like a Nightsister. Could it be that the roots of corruption were already at work in their hearts? If the dark side was already at work in them. Then it should be a simple matter to enslave him, so that he would be their healer. They might even be able to use him as bait to make a Nightsister out of the daughter of the Singing Mountain Clan's Mother.

In the history of the Nightsisters on the Glass Mountain. The Singing Mountain Clan is the only clan that they have not been able to recruit a Nightsister from. Mother would be so pleased if they could recruit two Sisters from that clan. One being the daughter of a Clan Mother. She knew she had to get back to the Glass Mountain right away. Mother will be so happy to hear this news. Maybe she will even let her pick which slave she gets to sleep with when she gets back. You know you have pleased the Mother when she lets you pick, rather than picking someone for you.

Mother Andriel had let the Clan Mother of the Red Hills Clan know when she can expect them to move on. The Clan Mother had talked to her Sisters about putting on a dance exhibition for their guests for the last night they would be there. The Sisters in turn had asked their guests if they also would dance for them. They mentioned that they never brought their dance costumes. A couple of the Sisters agreed to lend Ludia, and Diennu, their outfits. Since they were close to the same size. They all went as a group to see if Mother Andriel could quickly make something up for Krillgan. She drew up a pair of baggy pants, with no openings in it whatsoever. They idea being that the seamstresses could later take it apart and make something useful out of it. It had a drawstring at the waist, and was tucked in at the ankles. Andriel picked a bright yellow dress fabric for the pants. The tailors had never worked with such a bright fabric before. But the pants were very easy to make. Normally when making an outfit for dance. The Sisters had learnt long ago to have at least one strap coming over the shoulder, so that the Sister does not lose the bottom of the outfit, when she was going to do a big jump. Embarrassing moments like this were averted, because the elders insisted that a dance costume be worn in a rehearsal, before being worn before the public.

Krillgan was well aware of this, and wonder why his mother had come up with this design. He had to modify his dance routine to make sure that he always had a hand or hands at his waist, holding his pants in place when he went to do a jump.

The Clan Mother was seen by the people of the village going down into their water well. They knew she was a very hands on type of woman, and when she came up and suggested that they place a couple more kegs of new ale, and regular ale in the well to cool, they figured she went down to check on inventory. What she really went down for, was to hide the vials of healing oil Krillgan had made up for them. Mother found the well to be a very convenient place to hide small, but important things. Krillgan had intrusted her with four vials for her clan, and two vials for the settlements. He was quite the blessing for her clan.

Another way he blessed them, was by scattering the seeds for that narcotic producing plant, after he picked it. Her healers had not found such a plant before in all of their territory. They had always relied on the Frenzied River Clan, and the Misty Falls Clan, to provide them with powerful pain killing plants. Because of the frequent territorial disputes with the Frenzied River Clan, it was not easy to negotiate for the plants. The Misty Falls Clan was also hard to negotiate with these past few years, with the arrogant attitude of their healers. It was like they expected you to kiss their feet, even before you start negotiating.

If it wasn't for the Singing Mountain Clan and their little gifts of appreciation. They would have been in bad trouble a number of times. She sent one of her healers to check the area, where Krillgan said that he found the plant. She was so happy and excited when she came back. She found a number of baby plants, and said that in a couple of months they should be able to start harvesting their own plants. She said that she believes that there is an underground stream running underneath the riverbed, which is probably why the first plant was able to take root and live.

During dinner that evening, a number of Sisters were eating with their guests from the Singing Mountain Clan. Mother Andriel told everyone that she was so looking forward to telling her husband, and everyone else in the Singing Mountain Clan about the baby named after her. Since her name means princess, there are now two princesses on Dathomir.

Their Clan Mother had informed her Sisters about who Mother Andriel and Father Chitrah were to Dathomir, when she was told they were at the settlement in the hill and needed their help. They were told to treat her like the Queen she is, but do not call her Queen, it can hurt her, and bring a curse on their clan. One of the Sisters without thinking, said, "They may have a little princess, but we have the Queen right here with us." Right after she said it she knew that she made a mistake. All the Sisters suddenly became very quiet. They wondered whether their foolish Sister had brought a curse on their clan.

Krillgan took what she said, and put a little spin on it. "I know that I consider you a Queen, and so do all your children."

Ludia said, "Mother Princess must just be another name for Queen, because you are certainly a Queen to me."

Diennu also said that she felt that Mother Andriel was like a Queen to her.

To Mother Andriel, the three of them were still children. Specifically, her children. She watched them all grow up in her home and was very proud of them. She got up from where she had been sitting with tears in her eyes. She went up to each one of them, and hugged them. Thanking them for the compliment. She told each one of them, that they make her feel proud every day. But she never feels prouder than when they call her mother.

The Clan Mother did not realise that she had been holding her breath. These three Sisters from the Singing Mountain Clan are amazing. They just turned a potential curse into a blessing.

All the Sisters had tears in their eyes. Like the Clan Mother, they knew that a curse had been transformed into a blessing. They were all that much more excited to see how well they dance.

They had told their guests that they wanted the Fire Lady to start off the dancing. Then two Sisters from the Red Hills Clan would dance, followed by Ludia. After Ludia two more Sisters from the Red Hills Clan would dance, than Krillgan would get to finish the evening off. The Sister who had lent her outfit to Diennu was one of the Sisters that helped her out at the settlement. She had warned Diennu that she would be asked to go first. So the two of them decided to make the opening a spectacular event. When Diennu was asked to start. She took her position. Then she announced, "I am the Fire Lady!" Then she threw a huge ball of force fire straight up in the air. Her new friend had been standing by at the well. When she saw the ball of fire go up, she quickly made a small water javelin from the well water, and threw it at the huge fire ball. Because it was a very small water javelin, it did not put the huge fireball out. Instead it caused the huge fireball to explode into a whole bunch of little fireballs, then they went out. Everybody clapped, especially the children. Then Diennu started her dance while her new friend ran back to her place so she did not miss it.

When Diennu finished, everyone clapped for her, and it wasn't because they were being polite. She had given a great performance, now the pressure was on for everyone else to give the same quality of performance she had just demonstrated. Her new friend ran up to her and put a cloak around her, and hugged her. She was so proud that she was wearing her outfit. She made her sit with her through the rest of the dances.

The local girls did equally well in their routines. Which made the people of the village feel proud. When Ludia's turn came, the Sisters compared her routine to Diennu's. They saw some common elements performed very well, which is what they expected, since they knew they practised together. But they also saw some important differences, which they attributed to the different warrior techniques the two Sisters were trained under. The Sisters applauded another outstanding performance.

Again the Sister that had lent her the outfit she was wearing, came out and put a cloak on her, and hugged her, and made Ludia sit with her. The next two local girls were able to maintain the excellent quality of their performances, as the dancers who had gone before them.

Then it was Krillgan's turn. He had a nice bright pair of pants, but no shirt on. The Sisters started teasing him that this was scandalous for a Sister to be dancing without a top on. This made Krillgan more embarrassed than he already was. The Sisters did not know that he had dark blood, so his face and chest went dark when he was embarrassed. Because it was dark out his face became hard to see. They wondered what type of dance performance he would give, since very few healers also dance.

Krillgan loved to jump in his dance routine. So every time he jumped, they were expecting him to leave his pants behind. They also saw elements he had gleaned from his two warrior friends. He ended his dance by doing a number of tumbles and somersaults, as if each one started where the last one ended in smooth transition. Then he launched himself straight up into the air. So high, that they could only see his pants. The he turned and came straight down head first. At the last moment, when it looked like he was going to smash into the ground, he flattened himself out, and hit the ground with such force, that everyone could feel the ground shake.

When he stood up everyone jumped to their feet to applaud him. They all believed that his performance was a fitting way to end the dance exhibition. The Clan Mother brought out a cloak for Krillgan, than invited all of the day's dancers to come out and stand with him. Ludia and Diennu quickly stood on either side of him. The other four dancers went two to a side. All the people got to their feet again to applaud all the dancers. Many of them believed that they would never see such a nice performance again.

The Clan Mother told the dancers, that there was food and drink waiting for them in the dining area. She then turned to the people. She told them that she was sure the dancers would not want to eat alone, so the kitchen had prepared a celebration dinner for everyone. The children were excited to hear that they were invited with everyone else. They were also told that it was okay for them to talk to the dancers. The first thing the children wanted to know, was whether Krillgan had to do anything special to make himself purple. He told them that he did not know if he was doing anything special, but he loved to eat berries. He especially loved to eat the big purple ones. The children told him that they also turn purple when they eat berries. But then their mothers make them wash it off. Krillgan told them, that when he was their age, his mother made him wash the berry juice off as well. But she could not tell if he did or not, until she kissed him. So he used to get lots of kisses from his mother when he was their age. The children guessed that what he said was funny, because all the Sisters around them laughed.

Some of the young girls that had just started to train as Sisters, told Ludia and Diennu that when they grow up, they want to be able to dance as nice as they do. Ludia and Diennu pointed to the four local Sisters that had also danced. They told the little Sisters that they have four excellent dancers right there, to help them learn.


	13. Chapter 13

©2016

Everyone slept in, the next morning. Krillgan, Ludia, and Diennu had made and said goodbye to many new friends. The Clan Mother told them that she would be sending some Sisters to escort them to the edge of their territory. Because they had to destroy their yellow silk flags when they were contaminated. She has also sent a runner to the Frenzied River Clan, to have Sisters waiting for them at the edge of their territory. Since the Frenzied River Clan are silk producers, hopefully they will make them some new ones, to replace the ones they had to destroy. She told Ludia, that the next time she sees her mother, she will let her know how honoured she was for her and her friends to come and visit them.

It was a strange feeling to see all the Sisters from the Frenzied River Clan waiting for them. They were certainly being given the royal treatment. They told them that the runner had told them how nice and special they were, and all the Sisters wanted to meet the male Sister from the Singing Mountain Clan. Especially when the runner mentioned how nice he looked without his shirt on.

The whole ride back to their main village, the Sisters tried to coax the embarrassed Krillgan out of his shirt. Mother Andriel, Ludia, and Diennu, thought it was funny at first, and also teased him. But when they saw how dark his face was getting, they felt sorry for him. They told the Sisters that Krillgan does not just do things because you ask. You have to inspire him. That turned out to be a mistake. Now the Sisters started inviting him to their place so that they could give him some personal inspiration. Now they felt really bad for him, and did not know how to help him.

When they came near the main village. Krillgan asked the Sisters where they would be keeping their Rancor, because they need to spend time with them, since they have been surrounded with unfamiliar Rancor since leaving that morning. The Sisters took that as more than a hint. Their Rancor's wellbeing was a very serious issue for all of them. Play time was over. They pointed out a small palisaded area. They told them that their Rancor knew not to go there, without a Sister. They left them to go there on their own. When they entered the simple enclosed area, the Rancor could smell that other Rancor had used it. But their smell was faint, and there were three of them, so their herd smell would dominate.

Krillgan lay down on the ground exhausted. Ludia and Diennu quickly came to his side to strengthen him. They apologised for teasing him earlier. He told them that it was alright. Their teasing he could take. It was when the red lady joined in that he felt overwhelmed. Now they knew he was teasing them back. Andriel came and knelt by his head, stroking his hair.

"You would think from your reaction that an older woman could not have some fun once and a while."

Krillgan took her one hand and kissed it. "Apology accepted."

Mother and son smiled at each other for a moment.

Strongman asked the other Rancor, if this was normal for the female humans from other clans to act this way towards Krillgan? This was the first trip where anyone but Aliyanna had ridden him. They said they did not know. This was their first trip beyond the town.

After Krillgan started feeling stronger, the three Sisters told the Rancor that they would be back later that day to go hunting with them. They left their main weapons with the Rancor, and followed Mother Andriel to the village.

At the main gate, a Sister that looked familiar to Krillgan, asked them to follow her. She told them that their Clan Mother would like to have a word with them. The Clan Mother was not an over imposing person. If they had never met her before, they probably would never have known she was a Clan Mother.

After they were seated, she thanked them for coming to visit their clan. The Sisters were so excited to hear about the topless dancer. Krillgan looked down at the ground, thinking, mother what have you done to me? The Mother smiled at Krillgan's reaction. She preferred seeing a modest male Sister than a flamboyant self-absorbed male Sister. She asked them if they enjoyed their visit with the Red Hills Clan. They all indicated that they had a very good time. She told them that she hopes their stay here is equally as enjoyable. Her own Sisters would like to have their own dance exhibition next evening, and were hoping they would participate.

They told the Mother, that they did not bring their outfits. They were lent some outfits by the Sisters in the Red Hills Clan. Mother Andriel did manage to get some nice pants made for Krillgan, because none of the Sisters there were his size. But they left those pants behind. The Clan Mother told them that she did not know anything about outfits for dancing. She thought that they could wear what they were wearing now. Mother Andriel told her that she would see what they could come up with.

Krillgan, Ludia, and Diennu, were confident that Mother Andriel would have costumes for them. When it came to clothing, she was a miracle worker. The Clan Mother than asked them, if they could tell her what they discussed with the Clan Mother from the Red Hills Clan?

Ludia came right out and said, "No!"

This brought another smile to the Clan Mother's face. Ludia is a lot like her mother. She asked if they can tell her how they managed to lose their yellow flags, so that they required an escort.

They told about their primary purpose for this trip. Visiting the settlements that still pay them tribute. Since it was intended to be a peaceful visit, they all left their weapons with their Rancor before entering the settlement. (Everyone but Andriel. She was too well trained by the Togruta to never give up your weapons.) That's when they discovered that the settlement was overrun by mold. So everything they had on them became contaminated, including the yellow flags, and had to be destroyed. They mentioned losing all their medicines, and clothes, and how the Red Hills Clan was able to offer them some assistance. They even offered to dig them a new settlement. But the people wanted to try and salvage their own. So it was up to the one person trained by the Builder to try and come up with a plan.

The Clan Mother asked them, which one of them had been trained by the Builder? Ludia and Diennu pointed at Krillgan. The Clan Mother was astonished, "So you are more than just a healer."

"Father wanted me to have a well-rounded education. He told me that many disciplines overlap, and other disciplines are complimentary."

The Mother was impressed with Krillgan. She asked him what he came up with. He outlined the problems as he saw them. Then explained the strategy he employed to overcome each problem. Then he told her that he was not there to execute the strategy himself, because he was called away. So Diennu was left to oversee its execution, and she did a remarkable job. The Mother wanted to know why he wasn't there himself, when the work was so critical for the settlement. He told her about the young girl that had come to them from the other settlement, because her father had been mauled by a predator. Since they had no medicines, he was the only one who could perform any sort of healing. He had to go. Ludia was better trained in dealing with the predator situation, so she was the logical second choice. Mother Andriel stayed behind because there was a pregnant young lady in the settlement about to give birth. Diennu had the Sisters from the Red Hills Clan available to back her up. Krillgan admitted that he was fortunate to find a plant that could be used as a painkiller. The Clan Mother asked him if there was only one plant, or were there others? Krillgan told her that he only found the one plant. He did not mention anything about scattering the seeds. The Clan Mother said that it was unfortunate that he only found one. The Red Hills Clan desperately needs to have access to their own source of this type of plant. Politics keeps her from assisting them, every time they ask for help. They were surprised to hear the Clan Mother indicate that she wished she could help her rival clan, whenever they needed assistance.

When Krillgan described the work Ludia had to do, before he started with the healing. The Clan Mother wanted to know why he could not do it himself, he certainly seems qualified. Krillgan told her that as soon as he touches someone, the body starts to heal right away. It would start joining bones that were out of place. It would completely envelope the dead flesh, which can lead to complications later. He has learnt to be very careful about touching someone, in case he makes a bad situation worse, in his desire to help someone. The Clan Mother commended him. Telling him that it showed great wisdom on his part to do so. He told her that he could not take credit for that. It took the other healers in the clan to notice this, especially their Clan Mother. He wanted to rush in and start laying hands on everyone. The Clan Mother said that it shows that he has received excellent training. After their talk, the Clan Mother again thanked them for coming. She told them that the Sister that brought them to her, will show them the accommodations they had arranged for them.

The guest house was a small two bedroom building. The Sister apologised that they did not have anything with more bedrooms for them. They decided that Ludia and Diennu would share the bed in the one bedroom. Mother Andriel and Krillgan would share the bed in the other bedroom. Mother Andriel could change in the girl's bedroom.

Mother Andriel left them, to go see what she could arrange for dance outfits for them. The rest of them decided to play tourist, and look at what Father Chitrah had built for them. Andriel found the seamstress shop, and found all of the women busy working on dance outfits for the Sisters. They told her that she could help herself to whatever supplies they have on hand, but none of them would have time to sew even one seam for her before the dancing takes place. Andriel was not discouraged, there was one source of people who could sew that might be able to help her. After working with the tailors in the Red Hills Clan, she was willing to see if they would be willing to work with her here in this clan.

When she found their shop, she gently knocked on their door. They had never had anyone knock on their door before, so the sound surprised them. They were even more surprised to find a red lady standing outside their door. Now they were shocked to find out that she was a seamstress looking for their help. When she explained what she would like them to do. They admitted that they had nothing to do and were bored. So they agreed to take on her projects. She made a quick drawing of the pants she wanted them to make, including the details of all the measurements. She told them that she would go get the fabrics from the seamstress's shop, because none of their fabrics would do. It did not take her long to come back with the fabric, then she went off to find the person they would be making it for. It did not take her long to find Krillgan, and she took him back to the tailors' shop.

The tailors knew the outfit was for the dance exhibit. They also saw that the design was for a man. For a quick drawing it was quite good. They assumed that she had drawn a man's pants because they were tailors, and obviously this seamstress had worked with tailors before. They were surprised to have her come back with a young man.

They checked all the measurements she had given, and found them spot on. They had given the red lady a desk to work at, to come up with the drawings of the other two outfits she had asked for. While they were working with Krillgan, they asked him what his role was with the dance. They had always understood that it was only for Sisters. He told them that he is a Sister from the Singing Mountain Clan. They knew that if he is a Sister that he must also be a healer.

They asked him if he knew the Builder very well, because he was from the Singing Mountain Clan. Krillgan told them that the Builder raised him, and the nice lady working at the desk is the Builder's wife.

One of the tailors suddenly remembered his manners, and asked Andriel if he could go get her a cup of tea. Andriel smiled at him, and told him that she would like that. As he was about to walk out of the door he turned back, and asked if anyone else would like one. They all told him they were good, so he left. In the kitchen he told the staff that the Builder's wife was in their shop. He is getting her a cup of tea, and wondered if they had anything that would go with it. They had biscuits that they made for themselves, for their tea, and had not shared them with anyone else. Because he said it was for the Builder's wife, they gave him a small plate of them. The Builder had brought fresh water into their village. The tailor made two cups of tea. He liked the way the biscuits smelt, and hoped that the Builder's wife would let him have one.

When the tailor returned with biscuits as well as tea, the other tailors were sorry they turned him down. Andriel insisted that he have some of the biscuits as well.

Krillgan complained about having to dance shirtless again. Andriel told him that the Sisters were expecting it. At least he had straps coming over his shoulders to help him keep his pants up this time. She asked the tailors if they could make a cloak for him to wear. To keep him warm, before and after, he danced. The tailor who was sharing the tea with Andriel, got up and had a nice light grey cloak made for him in no time. This made Krillgan feel much better. He did not mind not having a shirt when he danced, because he found himself getting quite hot, especially with a thin layer of fur. But having something to put on afterwards was a necessity. When they finished, Krillgan was happy with their work. They fit him quite well, yet did not interfere with his movement.

After he left with his new cloak and pants on his arm. Andriel showed the tailors the designs and measurements for the two young ladies. The tailors had a quick conference. They approached Andriel and told her that it was not necessary for the two young ladies to come to their shop to be fitted for their outfits, like they had just done for the young gentleman. They trust her measurements to be correct. They also don't know how they can explain to their wives, why they had to work with two lovely young ladies who were only dressed in their undergarments. Not to mention, that when the young men of the village found out, they would all look for excuses to come into their shop. Andriel told them she understood. They did ask if she could spend the day with them, in case they have questions about her designs. She asked if that would upset their wives. They told her that once they found out she was there, they would want to come by and visit. Andriel promised them she would come.

Krillgan showed off his new dance pants and cloak to Ludia and Diennu. Mother Andriel showed them a copy of the designs she made up for them. The girls were happy with what they saw. They won't be as complex as their outfits at home. But they should still look nice on them. They asked mother, if they would be getting cloaks as well? Andriel promised them she would look into it. She was hoping that they would have a couple of spare cloaks at the seamstresses' shop. At mealtime Ludia and Diennu were getting tired of acting like Krillgan's bodyguards, word was not getting around very quickly that Krillgan had pledged to marry.

Fortunately for them, Mother Andriel was able to get two medium gray warrior cloaks from the seamstresses, and the tailors were able to finish the outfits for Ludia and Diennu in plenty of time for Andriel to do alterations if necessary. All the while Andriel had a lovely time having tea with their wives.

When it came time for the dance exhibition, there were a lot more of the local Sisters who wanted to dance. For many of them this would be the first time they would dance before anyone other than their Sisters, so there was a lot of nervous energy in the air. The Sister co-ordinating the dancing, showed Ludia and Diennu the openings she had in their schedule for them. Ludia decided to take the first opening, since Diennu went first with the Red Hills Clan. Of course, they saw that Krillgan was marked in as the final dancer. Everything was going well, there were a lot of nice dancers. They were able to sit together as a group, with Krillgan sitting between Ludia and Diennu, and Mother Andriel sitting next to Diennu. When Ludia's turn came, the people rose to clap to show their appreciation. They did the same when Diennu finished her dance. The young lady who was to dance next was a little nervous as this was her first time. She was still in the first part of her routine, when she gathered herself to do a big jump. But instead of jumping she collapsed onto the ground in pain.

The healers came out right away to examine her. Krillgan and Mother Andriel stepped forward in case they were needed. The healers noticed a huge bulge in the dancer's groin area pushing against her outfit. They told their Mother that she had a hernia, and asked her what they should do. She told them to carry her to their guest's house and let the healers from the Singing Mountain Clan look after her.

The young lady was wearing a simple two piece dancer's outfit. The top piece came down only to just above the diaphragm. Designed to keep her mountains in place. There was an intentional skin gap before the bottom piece started just above the hips, going down to the mid thighs. There were two straps that came up from the bottom piece, over the shoulders of the dancer. The top piece and the bottom piece were purposely made from two different coloured material. Four healers carried her to the guest house. A lot of the crowd was disappointed to see Krillgan leave the area. They were all looking forward to watching the topless Sister dance. There were still a lot of Sisters scheduled to dance. So the Sisters asked the organiser, if one of them could be sent to the guest house, to see if Krillgan might still be able to dance, when his turn came near. The organiser agreed because she wanted to see him dance as well.

Mother Andriel directed the healers to place the Sister on their bed. After doing so, they removed the bottom of her dance outfit. Like many of the dancers, she wore nothing underneath, because sometimes the undergarments can bunch up in embarrassing ways. The large lumpy lump was clearly visible, lifting up one side of her forest of mysteries. Her intestines had come through were the abdominal wall attached to the pelvic bone, no doubt it was painful. Mother Andriel ushered the local healers out of the bedroom. They were quite disappointed because they wanted to watch what the two healers would do. She politely closed the door behind them. Two of them decided to go back and watch the dancing. The other two chose to stay, in case the healers working on their Sister needed something.

Krillgan accessed the situation, and asked the young lady to slide backwards off of the bed, until her shoulders touched the floor. She did as she was told, with Mother Andriel doing her best to help her. She did not like the position she was in, with her shoulders resting on the floor, her buttocks resting against the side of the bed, the bottoms of her feet resting flat on top of the bed, and her place of secrets fully exposed to the ceiling. She asked Krillgan if he was going to heal her or have sex with her. Andriel could see the tears in her eyes. She told the young lady that that was no way for her to talk to her son, when all he wanted to do was help her. The girl had been told that the red woman was the male Sister's guardian. Then it made sense to her that with all the time this lady had been looking after him. She would consider him her son. She apologised to Mother Andriel, telling her that she was embarrassed, frustrated, and hurting. Andriel told her that she understood. Then she asked her to look at things from their perspective. A mother and son having to deal with a half-naked strange woman in their bedroom. She started to laugh, then stopped because it hurt. She asked Andriel if she had done that on purpose to punish her. Andriel had sat down on the floor, right beside her. She pushed the hair off her forehead so that it would not get into the young lady's eyes. In a gentle voice she told her that she would never do anything to intentionally harm her. The young lady believed her, and did not complain, as Mother Andriel did her gentle best to try and persuade her intestines to return to their rightful place.

Mother Andriel found out her name was Gwenlath, and she told her that the reason they had her in this position was not for sex. But to have gravity help them in getting her intestines back where they belong. The young lady asked her if that was what the lumpy stuff was. Andriel told her that it was. Normally when she flexes her abdominal muscles they help food to move along the intestines. But this time when she flexed her abdominal muscles in anticipation of her jump. A rupture occurred in the abdominal wall where it is anchored to the pelvic bone. Because she was squeezing so hard, a good section of her intestines pushed through. Gwenlath asked her, what would happen if they did nothing about it? Andriel told her a lot of bad thing could happen. If they could not get the intestines pushed back in. The portion of her intestine sticking through might not be getting its blood supply and die, causing her to get a life threatening infection. If an entire section of an intestine came through. She would not be able to digest food, and she would starve to death. If they were able to get the intestines back in, and the rupture was not healed properly. It could reopen under the stress of childbirth, causing a painful situation to become much worse. Because childbirth is not a process that can be stopped in the middle. If she survived she might be permanently injured down there, and have to spend the rest of her life in bed.

Gwenlath asked her if she always gave such encouraging news to her patients. Andriel told her that she has not given her the encouraging news. She believes, that between the two of them. She will be completely healed, and not have to worry about any of the things she had mentioned. When she finished coaxing the intestines back in. Andriel pushed a bit of skin in the rupture to make sure there was no part of any intestine sitting in the rupture. She warned Gwenlath that this might hurt a little bit, as she pulled on the hairs from her forest of mysteries to pull the skin back out. Andriel got up and told Krillgan it was his turn.

For Krillgan this was a very stressful situation. He had never had his face so close to a young lady's secret place before, and he certainly did not want to disrespect this young lady that needed him to help her. Once his hand was in its place he closed his eyes. To Gwenlath it looked like he was concentrating, using the force to heal her. The tingling she felt in that part of her body was better than any sex she has ever had. What Krillgan was doing was forcing his mind to think of other things, as his father had taught him. He recalled the story that both of his parents shared with him from each of their perspectives, about the time his father was physically, and emotionally exhausted, and his mother innocently flirted with him, and the near disaster it caused to both of their lives. Krillgan appreciated how emotionally strong his father really is, and hoped he had that same strength in him.

When he felt the flow of healing oil stop, he opened his eyes and looked down in Gwenlath's face and told her he was done, she was healed. She saw the look of love in his eyes. He really cared about her. He used the force to lift her up and lay her on the bed and pulled a blanket over her, to cover her nakedness. She bonded with him in that moment. Not a Sister-Sister bond, more like she was now part of his family. She had always wanted an older sister in her life. Now she had an older brother, but because he was also a Sister, she found her older sister as well. She told him that she was very grateful. Andriel noticed the bonding between the two of them, and was happy for both of them. When Krillgan stepped out of the bedroom he told the healers she was healed. They both rushed in to check her. This was impossible. She would require at least a month of bedrest before she was healed.

A sister had shown up, just before he came out, to see if he could dance. He was feeling quite exhausted, but knew he could not say no, so he followed her. Both Diennu and Ludia were shocked by how exhausted he looked. They had never known him to be drained physically when performing a healing. They were both very concerned about him, but only one of them did something about it. When Krillgan started his routine, he felt a subtle flow of energy. He started his routine in a lackluster manner. But as he continued, he became stronger and stronger. He saw the look of concern on Diennu's face, but he saw a smile of encouragement on Ludia's. She was strengthening him, but she had to be careful, or others might think he was her puppet. Just like a Nightsister's slave. He gave them their ground shaking ending, then slowly made his way to where they were sitting. Wondering where he had left his cloak.

The dance organiser asked everyone to take their seats. They had one more dancer. The Sister that was injured earlier, has recovered enough that she wants to finish her routine. The healers have given their approval. When Krillgan sat between Diennu and Ludia, they both extended their cloaks around him. Then they started strengthening him, wanting to know what happened. He told them that it was a particularly difficult healing, but everything was alright. Mother Andriel showed up and sat beside them. She told Krillgan that he had left his cloak behind, so she lent it to Gwenlath, for when she finished her dance. The organiser told her that it was okay for her to start her dance routine at the beginning. Gwenlath appreciated that because it was easier to start at the beginning. When she came to the part where she was going to do her jump. Everyone held their breath, because this was where she was injured. She pulled it off flawlessly. Everyone felt that she did the first part of her routine better the second time than when she did it the first time. When she finished, everyone stood to applaud her, and the organiser brought out her light grey cloak, wondering where she got it from. Gwenlath made her way through the crowd and gave Krillgan a big hug. Then she thanked him for letting her use his cloak, and returned it. Diennu and Ludia saw the unmistakable look of affection in her eyes, and were starting to feel jealous. When the other Sisters from her clan started crowding around Krillgan, she asked them please for her sake, be gentle with him. She has been adopted by him, and she has found in him the older sister she has always wanted. Her Sisters did listen to her, and no longer flirted with him. She was their Sister, they had bonded with her, if she considers him family, than they would respect that. Even Diennu and Ludia stopped feeling jealous. They were not surprised to see her go hug Mother Andriel, who then but a blanket around her shoulders to keep her warm. They all went to the dining area where another meal had been prepared for everyone who was hungry. Now when a Sister approached them, it was just because they wanted to talk to them. A lot of Sisters talked with Diennu and Ludia, about elements of their dance routine, asking their permission to use it in their own. Many Sisters thanked Krillgan for doing his routine shirtless, but they did not flirt with him, with Gwenlath sitting next to him. The Sisters from the Singing Mountain Clan where now comfortable talking with the local Sisters, and were much more at easy. They were starting to enjoy themselves.

The next morning the Sister that had shown their guest where they will be staying, asked her Mother's permission to take them to the village of former slaves. She reminded her Mother that it was because of the Singing Mountain Clan that they are here. The Clan Mother knew she had another reason for wanting to take them, but let them go. Gwenlath petitioned her Mother to be allowed to go with them. The healers petitioned Mother to have Gwenlath stay behind so they could talk to her about the healing. So far they have more questions than answers. Mother told the healers that their questions can wait. She had heard that Gwenlath was accepted as part of Mother Andriel and Krillgan's family. Her first priority was to see that Mother Andriel was happy. She did not tell them that she already knew the answers to the healers' questions. Just that their questions can wait. When Gwenlath knew for sure that she was one of a select few that was going. She spent time with her Rancor to let him know how important the people and their Rancor where to her. The Herd Mother called her and her Rancor to her. She asked her Rancor whether he trusts Gwenlath. He told her he did. She told him to trust her on this. When they did finally go, Gwenlath wanted to ride beside Mother Andriel. Gewnlath's Rancor told Protector that he could smell his human's smell on the two humans he was carrying. Protector told him that he could smell the smell of his two humans' on his human. Gwenlath's Rancor asked Protector if there would be peace between them. Protector told the other Rancor that there will be peace. They walked side-by-side for the rest of the trip, like they had been doing it all their lives.

Krillgan told the Sister that was leading them, that he knew where she was taking them. The Sister asked him, how he knew, because they were not told? Krillgan told her that he finally recognised her. She was the Sister whose finger he healed, when they came to hear the Singing Mountains. She was taking them to the village of the former slaves. She asked him, if there was anything wrong with that? Krillgan told her that there was nothing wrong. This was one of the reasons that they came to the Frenzied River Clan. It would be wrong for them to go to the village on their own. He was glad the Clan Mother gave her permission. The Sister had great respect for Krillgan, he had grown up to be a fine young man.

When they arrived at the village, all the Rancor promised that they would not fight, there was peace between the two herds. So the Sisters felt confident that they could leave them alone. When the men Krillgan healed saw Krillgan, a faint blurry image was triggered in their mind. They knew he was their healer. The women could not understand why the men were attracted to the handsome purple young man. But when they saw Mother Andriel, all the women wanted to cry. They came up to her and hugged her and kissed her. They could not believe she had come to them. They asked her if her husband had also come. She told them that he was at home with their children. They were overjoyed to hear that they had more than one child. They called their children over to introduce them to the red lady. They told Mother Andriel it was because of her training, that they were able to bring their husbands under control, so that they did not force themselves on them. After their husbands heard the Singing Mountains for themselves, it was like the gentle nature they had before they were poisoned was restored. Their marriage relationships are healthy, and they have the children to prove it. The Sister told the women that the one they should be thanking was the purple young man. He was the one who saved their husbands lives. That is why their husbands are touching him with great affection. Inside their childlike minds, they know. The woman did not want to believe it. He would only have been a child. Mother Andriel told them it was true. He was only a child when it happened. They heard the Clan Mother conversing with an adult, with the voice of a child. Mother Andriel told them that sometimes when a child is thrust into the role of an adult, they act like adults. When the Clan Mother talked to him, she was not talking to a child, she was talking to a healer. Her equal. When they approached them, their husbands turned and told them, "Good healer. Good friend." The woman started crying again, and hugged and kissed him.

They did not find it unusual that the sensation they had when kissing Mother Andriel was the same as when they kissed this young man. They asked him, why he hid from them? He told them that he had to, because of the Nightsisters, they did not know that he existed. He preferred it that way. Now that they do know he exists, it was safe for him to finally meet them. But they still have to be careful because they do not know what type of healing he can do. All the Sisters from both clans were all moved by the affection the village women first showed Mother Andriel, than Krillgan. Gwenlath was so proud to find out that her older sister has been helping people since he was a child. She told Diennu and Ludia, that she wished she had grown up with him like they did. The village women knew there had to be a feast that night. They all wanted to prepare their best dishes for Mother Andriel and Krillgan to try. After the feast each family took one of the Sisters home with them. They found that every family had only one bed no matter how big the family was. They all slept together, and the Sister was expected to sleep with them.

They found that they only needed a light blanket, because of the heat given off by everyone else on the bed. Mother Andriel and Krillgan were given first pick on who they would be going home with that night. The next morning the village people bid them a tearful goodbye. With tears of joy that they were finally able to meet their healer, and tears of sorrow because people who were dear to them were leaving.

On the trip back, the Sisters talked about their families. It seems that every family had at least one person in it that snored, and what the rest of the family did about it. One Sister wondered out loud if that was why she had an elbow to her ribs, in the middle of the night, which sent all the other Sisters laughing.

Back at the main village the healers cornered Gwenlath, asking her to tell them what really happened. Gwenlath told them it was not like they were thinking, Krillgan was a perfect gentleman. When they didn't laugh, she knew they were serious. So she told them that she cannot tell them what happened, without Mother's permission. Which is what Mother Andriel had told her to say. They almost dragged her to their Mother to make her tell them. When they complained to Mother about her lack of cooperation, they were surprised that Mother said it was because Gwenlath is a smart girl. She knew that what she knew, could endanger a person's life. Where they willing, to also be that diligent, in protecting the life of a good person. They knew then that Mother knew what had happened, without even talking with Gwenlath. They wondered if their Clan Mother had some special force powers. When they promised to protect the people, Mother told Gwenlath that it was okay to tell them everything.

They interrupted Gwenlath's story, to ask her, why Krillgan needed Mother Andriel to be there? Gwenlath did not know. Mother told them she would explain it, after Gwenlath finished her story.

When she finished, Mother told the healers that Krillgan produced a healing oil in his body. She refused to say how this happened. She continued by telling them that as soon as Krillgan touches someone, their body automatically takes the healing oil and accelerates the healing. In Gwenlath's case, if Krillgan had touched her before Mother Andriel was able to coax her intestines back inside of her. Her body would have taken the healing oil, sealing off the rupture with the intestines still sticking through. Gwenlath told them that she remembered Mother Andriel saying, that a situation like that could kill her. Most of the healers found it hard to believe that Krillgan can heal simply by touch. Mother had the healers that carried Gwenlath, describe how bad the hernia was. They all said it was the worst they had ever seen. "Yet she was able to get up and do her dance routine after two of the healers re-examined her body and declared she was healed. How else can you explain the healing?"

They could not, unless their own healers were lying. They knew these healers were not the type to exaggerate, nor would they lie. So Mother asked them if they would do her a favour. Mother Andriel and Krillgan need to pick some healing plants to help replenish their supply. If they would show them where the healing plants are. She was sure that Krillgan would be willing to let them watch as he prepares a special ointment. Then if they still had questions they could talk further.

Mother Andriel and Krillgan where delighted, that the healers were willing to take them around to their different healing plants. They noticed that Mother Andriel carried the healing pouch of medicines. The plant leaves that Mother Andriel picked went into the pouch. What Krillgan picked, he kept in his hands. When they were finished, Krillgan asked if they could show him where he can mix the plants to make up an ointment. They took him to their lab. He was obviously familiar with the equipment. It did not take him long to extract the essential oils from what he had picked. They were surprised to see him drip some oil from his own fingertips. What the Clan Mother told them was true, he really does have healing oil inside of him. He was able to mix all the oils into a blend, and place them in four vials. They followed him to their Mother's place, where he presented the four vials to their Mother. He told her that only a drop or two was required for most healings. The more serious healing will require more. If the skin absorbs it quickly, than at least another drop is required. If it absorbs it slowly, then probably no more is required. After Krillgan left, their Mother asked the healers, if they had any more questions? They all shook their heads no.

Mother Andriel told them that they could stay for two more days, because they seem to be enjoying themselves. Gwenlath had started taking Krillgan's hand whenever she took them anywhere. When she noticed Diennu and Ludia looking at her, she asked them if sisters hold hands in their clan. The only sisters they knew that went anywhere together where their mothers. Yes they had seen them holding each other's hand on occasion. So they did not say anything, but both felt a twinge of jealousy. They went with the Sisters to their practise field and would practise new dance moves with them. Ludia, Diennu, and Krillgan, would do their three way fighting stick workout. When they did, the local Sisters would always stop what they do and watch. They would all work up quite a sweat doing it. Gwenlath asked them, what was the hardest thing they did in their workout? Krillgan told her that the hardest thing was not to hit your friend on their finger. They can be mad at you for a long time. She asked him if he gets mad at them when they hit his fingers. He told her that he was too good, they never hit his fingers.

Both young ladies said, "What?"

Then they started tickling him, one from each side. It wasn't long before Krillgan started yelling out,

"Yes, they do hit my fingers… Yes it hurts very much… No I don't get mad. I forgive them… Okay sometimes I get mad. But not for long because I love them!"

They stopped tickling him when he said that, and everyone else was laughing.

On the morning they were getting ready to leave. The Clan Mother presented them with two new yellow silk flags, and two new three flag harnesses. Ludia took one and Krillgan took the other. Now they did not need escorts when they were riding between clans. The Sisters from the Frenzied River Clan escorted them anyway. They were sorry to see them go. Gwenlath told them that she was going to ask her Mother's permission to go with a group to hear their Singing Mountains. Every Sister that has gone, claimed it changed their lives. For her there would be the added bonus of being able to visit with family while she was there.

It was sad to leave their friends behind.

They wondered if they would make any friends in the Misty Falls Clan. As they came closer, they came across one Sister who had been out hunting. Her and her Rancor had done quite well. She threw over to Krillgan and Ludia, a game animal each, so their Rancor would have something to eat for dinner. Then the Sister road ahead to let everyone know they are coming. Some Sisters on patrol, also met up with them. Gave them a pleasant greeting, than continued on their way.

When they came close to the main village, a Sister rode out to meet them. Directed them to where they could leave their Rancor. She told them they did not need to bring their yellow flags into the village. They could leave them with their Rancor. When they entered the main village, a Sister met them at the gate, and took them to meet their Mother. The Clan Mother asked them if they had had a pleasant trip so far. They told her that they had visited the settlement in the hill, and the canyon wall settlement. Then they spent a pleasant time with the Red Hills Clan, after that they were well received by the Frenzied River Clan. They basically told her nothing. The Clan Mother was a little disappointed. She hoped that after spending a few days with them, they might open up. She told them that they were welcome, and if there was anything she could do to make their stay more pleasant, they just needed to ask.

Krillgan told her that they had all heard about their wonderful gardens, and that they have the best collection of medicinal plants anywhere. He was wondering if she could arrange to have someone take them on a tour. He noticed that she hesitated. Of course he is going to want to see the gardens, not only are they beautiful, but they have all sorts of wonderful plants that would be interesting to a healer. She promised him that she would arrange for someone to give them a tour in the morning. Then she called a Sister in to her office, and asked her to take them to the guest house.

This Sister was different, than the one that brought them to their Clan Mother. The guest house was almost identical to the one in the Frenzied River Clan. After they settled in, they went to find the dining hall. They were starving after a long day's ride. When they entered the hall they started feeling uncomfortable. They sensed that something was not right. First, none of the Sisters had even attempted to flirt with Krillgan, from the moment they entered this clan's territory. Not that they minded, but still it signalled something is wrong. They second thing they noticed was that their seemed to be two groups in the clan, and they did not mix. What they did not know, was that the warrior Sisters and the healer Sisters have not had a bonding ceremony together for years. That this situation was tearing their Clan Mother up inside. So when they picked up their meal, they did not know where to sit, so they ended up sitting by themselves. They did not know what to do.

When they approached the village, the Sisters seemed friendly enough. Even to the point of providing dinner for their Rancor. They did not talk they just sat there and ate like everyone else.

When they finished, and had cleaned off their table. Krillgan thought he saw the Sister who was the hunter, leave the dining hall. He quickly ran after her, and everyone else ran after him. When he caught up with her, he first thanked her for providing dinner for their Rancor. She told him that it was getting late in the day, and there is no game near the village. She did not think they would have time to go out hunting themselves. He told her that it was a very kind gesture on her part. Something that seems to be lacking by the rest of the people in the village. She told him that most of the people were very nice, once you get to know them. It was only the healers that were a problem.

"You know healers. They think their poop does not smell."

"I'm a healer, but I know my poop smells, just not as bad as my father's."

This made Ludia and Diennu laugh. Andriel just smiled. The Sister laughed and held out her hand to him. Krillgan grabbed it than quickly let it go. Like something had bit him. The Sister was quite disappointed by his action.

Krillgan asked her not to be upset with him. As soon as he touched her, he knew that she has an injury. He needs to know what type of injury she has before he can touch her gain. She told him that he was a strange healer, even by their clan standards. But at least he wasn't too high up into himself. She showed him that she had accidentally cut herself when she was gutting an animal. Krillgan asked her to show him? When she did, he asked if this was her only injury, he was quite surprised, because he felt her body crave more healing than just this injury would need. He touched her near the wound, and felt it again. He pleaded with her to tell him where else she was injured, because he did not want to hurt her. He seemed concerned, and she was very embarrassed. She asked him if she could speak to him privately for a moment. He asked her if it was okay for Mother Andriel to also hear, because she is also a healer, and a very valuable consultant for him.

When she realised she was the Builder's wife she agreed. So the three of them went aside and talked. She told them that she was having trouble with her moon cycle. She has been cramping up a lot. Mother Andriel told him that it was safe for him to heal her. She did not anticipate any negative side effects. So Krillgan took her hand, and let the healing oil flow. The Sister could feel something happening in her body, something good. When it stopped she had tears in her eyes and thanked him. He told her that it was okay for her to tell people he healed her. Just don't tell them how. She asked if they could wait there a few minutes. She ran back to the dining hall, and returned with two other Sisters. One had a noticeable limp. Krillgan ran up to her and told her to stop. She told Krillgan that she had twisted her ankle while practising. Krillgan told her to sit on the ground. He then reached out with the force to see what he could see. He told her that it was no simple twisted ankle. It was about to give out on her completely.

Ludia had walked over, so he asked her to apply a slight tension to her leg. Then he touched her so that she could see some of what he could see, like she did at the settlement. When she had the right tension, she held it while Krillgan touched her and healed her. He asked her why she did not go to her healers. She snorted, then said that they want you to first confess that they are better than you, and you need them. Krillgan muttered that this was not right. Healers are supposed to help, not hurt.

Krillgan asked, if there are others like her? She told him that just about every warrior has some sort of injury or another. Krillgan asked her to go get everyone, and bring them to him. There was no need for anyone to suffer like this. He let go of her ankle. The pain was gone, and it was whole again. She hugged Krillgan and went back to the dining hall. It was not long before Krillgan had a lineup of people to attend to, and not just the warrior Sisters. The people of the village also came out to him. Mother Andriel talked to everyone first, to determine if they needed special care before Krillgan attended to them. One of the Sisters went and told her Mother. She knew that though she was a healer, she was the only one who still cared for the people. So she watched at a distance while Krillgan ministered to her people. She had tears in her eyes while she watched. He was a true healer.

She than arranged for the Sisters to set up a barricade, blocking the view down the street. So that a clan healer does not accidentally stumble on this scene and go all hysterical. The people were patient knowing that they had a healer that really cared about them, and asked nothing of them. Krillgan tried sending Ludia and Diennu to bed, because it was getting quite late. They told him that they were sticking around in case he needed them. As long as people needed him, he stayed and helped. He had no idea what time it was when he finished with the last person. Being in a deep valley there was not very much of the sky he could see. Otherwise he could have had an idea of the time by the position of the stars. He did not know that there had been a barrier blocking the street, as it had been removed when he finished with the last patient.

They found that someone had left a pot of tea and some biscuits for them to snack on, in the guest house. The tea was still quite warm, so whoever had left it, had done so recently. They had a nice little snack, before heading to bed.

They slept in because they were so tired. When they woke up, they found a breakfast tray with some warm tea in the main room of the guest house. There was also a little note. The Clan Mother would like to see them after they finished their breakfast.

The Clan Mother did not mention anything about how late it was in the morning, or about what she saw them doing last night. She just told them that she was happy to see them this morning, and she trusted that they slept well. They said they did. She told them that she had arranged for someone to take them on a tour of their gardens, right after lunch. She did not tell them that she had originally arranged it for the morning, but then told the person that they were unavailable until after lunch.

"If anyone asks. They have permission from her to pick any part of any plant they recognise for its healing merit."

After talking with the Clan Mother, they went back to the guest house. They tried to figure out what was going on, and how much the Clan Mother knew.

Mother Andriel said, that she would not be surprised if it was the Clan Mother herself that left the snack for them last night, and the breakfast tray this morning. They asked her why she said that. She told them that Clan Mothers always seem to know more than they let on. She probably did not mention anything about last night, no matter how grateful she was, because she would be forced to admit that her own healers have let her down. She is probably hoping that this can remain an internal matter, and she can find her way out of this dilemma, without her clan falling completely apart.

They asked her what they should do. She told them that they have to keep in mind that the Clan Mother has not asked for their help. So if a conflict arises with the healers, which will probably be quite likely. They have to deal with the conflict themselves, rather than pass it on to the rest of the clan, creating more division. Krillgan felt that they were up to the challenge, they just have to take one step at a time. The girls agreed, after all, they have a wise councillor to help guide them.

Mother Andriel sighed, "If only I was such a person."

The girls giggled, "Well we are not talking about Krillgan."

Krillgan complained about that remark. "He could be wise when he has too."

Ludia and Diennu both went up and patted him on his head. "You just keep telling yourself that."

Mother Andriel could not help herself, she burst out laughing. It wasn't long before the others joined her. The Clan Mother happened to be walking nearby. She stopped and listened. It has been too long since she last heard that sound in the village. She hopes this is a sign that it is returning.

Despite having a late breakfast, when lunch time approached, they all felt that they could have a bite to eat. When they entered the dining hall, they found it pretty much as they left it. Two cold camps.

When they went to get their meals, they found the kitchen staff very warm to them, offering them generous portions. Then giving them a desert made especially for them. They thanked the kitchen staff for their generosity. The kitchen staff thanked them for bringing warmth back into their hearts. They went and sat were they did before. Alone, apart from the two camps. When they sat down a warrior Sister got up from her group, and asked them if it was alright for her to sit with them. They told her she was more than welcome. They also mentioned that if she has not eaten yet, to just go get an empty plate, because the kitchen staff has given them too much. After she sat down, another Sister, then another came over, and were warmly greeted. It wasn't long before everyone from the one table had come over to join them. The healers could not help but hearing them talk. They heard the respect that the warrior Sisters had for the four strangers, and they were jealous. This was how they felt they should be treated. When they heard a couple of them laughing, they could not take it anymore. They got up and left. When they left, it was like a dark cloud had left the room, and now there was only sunshine. Every new person that came into the dining hall, wanted to sit with this group, even the Clan Mother. But she was a healer, and needed to be impartial. She was the only link between the two camps. So she had her lunch by herself in her office. She hoped and prayed that they had come to give a blessing to her clan, because they really needed one.

A couple of people approached Krillgan while they were in the dining hall and asked if he would heal them? They told him what was wrong, and he was willing to heal them.

After lunch, they were not sure where they were supposed to meet their guide, so they went back to the guest house. They found a Sister waiting there for them. They recognised her as being a warrior. Krillgan told her that he meant her no disrespect, but he was expecting a healer to show them around the garden. The Sister was not offended. She told him that a healer should have been courteous enough to show them around, but it seems like none of them were available. She grew up playing in the garden, so she knows it almost as well as any healer. She had even thought of becoming a healer herself, but then decided against it. They asked her why? To them she seemed like a good candidate to be a healer. She told them that she did not become a healer, because she was afraid that she would become like them.

She was pleasant as a guide, she knew where a lot of the plants originally came from. Only about ten percent of the plants were originally from the valley. Long ago when the clans were more open to sharing knowledge, healers were also more open to sharing plants, and every plant that they brought here thrived. Krillgan would stop every once and a while and pick leaves from a plant. He would also pick weeds from around the plant. They all noticed that they were being followed. Krillgan asked her who maintains the garden. She told him that the healers used to, but they don't like getting their hands dirty anymore. So the people of the village like her, who still care about the garden, will try and look after it when they have some spare time. Andriel spotted a plant that she recognised, but did not have any leaves of in her medicine bag. So she knelt down and started picking some. A Sister from the group that was following them started running and shouting, "No! No! Stop! You mustn't! Stop!"

Krillgan instinctively threw up an air shield around his mother to protect her from this mad person. The Sister ran right into it, and was stunned. Krillgan took the air shield down and stood between his mother and this Sister.

"Who are you to tell us to stop, when we have permission?"

The Sister rubbed her sore nose.

"Only healers are allowed to pick the plants."

"But she is a healer."

The Sister looked at him in disbelief, "But she is not a Sister."

"No she is not a Sister. But you don't need to be a Sister to be a healer. Anyone with a kind compassionate heart can be a healer. If you are any sort of healer you would know that!"

"I know that!"

But she didn't. She continued rubbing her nose as she walked back to the group. She told them that the purple guy said that you do not have to be a Sister to be a healer. He said that anyone with a kind compassionate heart could be a healer. The other healers scoffed at the idea. Then one told her to stop rubbing her nose, she will only make it worse.

Krillgan started sharing with their guide the healing properties of some of the plants. The ones that would help with a lot of the injuries he had encountered. The guide understood that he was doing this so she knew how to help her people. He wanted her to be a healer.

The healers were far enough back that they could not hear what they were saying. Krillgan liked that there were a lot of colourful plants around the medicinal ones. He knew that in some cases it was intentional, as both plants would benefit from growing so close to one another. They came to a secluded part of the garden, there were a lot of beautiful fragrant flowers there. But there was one plant that caught his attention. It was as if this part of the garden was built as a shrine around it. He could feel the healing potential that this plant had. He asked their guide what she knew about the plant. She told him that all she knew was that it was special to the healers.

Krillgan went up to the healers, "Oh lofty, and highly exalted ones. What can you tell be about the special plant?"

They knew that that he was mocking them.

"Nothing!

"You refuse to share with me, knowledge about a plant that the Creator has given to the people?"

"We are its guardians not you. So its knowledge will stay with us."

Krillgan was boiling mad inside. At least he did not tell them what he wanted to say. Instead he ordered them to take him to where he can mix up the plants he picked to make up an ointment. His group understood that their tour was over.

Mother Andriel took the hand of the guide, to hold her back, while the others departed. Ludia and Diennu told her that they were going to check in on the Rancor. Mother Andriel asked the guide if she needed her to go over any of the properties of the healing plants in the garden. The Sister said that she would appreciate it.

When the healers showed Krillgan where he could make up his ointment. He chased them all out of the room. He told them that because they were not willing to share with him. He was not willing to share with them. He made up four vials of the healing ointment to give to the Clan Mother. He then burnt all the evidence of what he had done. He washed everything that he had used. He then took the weeds that he had picked from the garden, and ground them up into a paste. (This was not why he originally picked them. As a healer he was trained to pick weeds from around healing plants. So they did not rob the special plants of their strength.) He then proceeded to pretend like he was destroying the evidence of what he had done, leaving trace amounts. Just enough to confuse anyone who tried to recreate what he had done. Burning most of the weed paste to ash.

When he met with the Clan Mother, he told her how disappointed he was in her healers. He then handed the vials he made to her. She looked at him in astonishment.

"After what you just said about the healers. I am surprised that you are giving this to me."

"I am not disappointed in you, or the rest of the people in your clan that need this healing ointment."

The Clan Mother thanked him for the gift. Krillgan talked to her about the warrior Sister, who had given them the tour of the garden. He told her about her passion for the garden. He suggested that since her healers were not maintaining the garden, and there were weeds growing everywhere. This Sister should be put in charge of the garden. If she learns a thing or two about the plants along the way, it can only be good for the clan. Mother told him that she had always hoped that she would be a healer. Krillgan reminded her that she would need to keep the claws of her so called healers away from this Sister, if she wants her to develop properly. He also told her that they would be leaving in the morning. If they stayed any longer, all they could do is cause trouble for her.

The Clan Mother said she understood, and was sorry that they were not staying longer. Krillgan met up with everyone else in the guest house. Mother Andriel was laying out the new leaves she had collected, to make sure they dried properly before putting them back in her pouch. Ludia and Diennu said that someone has provided fresh game for their Rancor, so there was no need to go hunting. Krillgan told them about his meeting with the Clan Mother, and how he had told her that they were leaving in the morning, because if they stayed any longer they could only cause her trouble. Ludia teased him, saying he really wanted to leave because he was afraid he might get up close and personal with one of the healers. Krillgan countered, that if getting his hands around their scrawny necks was up close and personal, than yes!

They went for dinner, as soon as they entered the dining hall, the people from the warrior group stood up, and asked them where they were going to sit, because they wanted to sit with them. The healers on the other hand turned their backs to them. Mother Andriel told the warriors that they can sit back down, they will join them once they grab their meals.

The healers could not understand why the healers from the Singing Mountain Clan would not sit with them. Sure they had a rocky introduction in the garden. But surely they were better to sit with, than warriors. It really bothered them that people where coming up to the male healer, asking him to touch them. As if he could bestow a special blessing on them. And when they started laughing again, it was just too much. They had to leave.

Back at the guest house Ludia asked Krillgan what was wrong. His mind has not been with them all through dinner. He was automatically touching people that came up to him, like he thought they wanted him to heal them, when all they wanted was to ask him a question. Krillgan was embarrassed when he heard that. He told her that he has been thinking about the medicinal plant the healers have, but are not willing to share it with the other clans. He thinks he knows a way that they can get some, but they might not want to go along with his plan. They told him to share. He said that they have to remember that the plant is located in a remote part of the garden, where there are a lot of lovely flowers. It was the type of place a young man might want to take a young woman he was interested in. He had noticed that there was actually more than one plant. One of them is going to seed. He was thinking that he should take Ludia there to be a distraction. While Diennu does her Ranger thing, and gets some seeds, and a sample of the soil they are in. Mother Andriel thought it was a good idea. Ludia liked the idea as well. Diennu wanted to know what they would be doing to be a distraction. Krillgan told her that they would be kissing of course. Diennu pouted. Why couldn't she be the distraction with him, while Ludia gets the seeds and soil? Krillgan said that it was because she was the Ranger. So no one would notice her. Mother Andriel took Diennu's hand in both of hers, and told her that she has to remember that she was doing this for the clan. Sometimes you have to make personal sacrifices for the good of the clan. Diennu muttered that she would rather sacrifice her lips. Then she looked at mother, who was still holding her hand.

"Okay I'll do it."

When everyone was ready, Krillgan said that they would go first, and took Ludia's hand. Diennu looked at mother, "Do they have to hold hands, as well?"

Mother told her that they have to make it look real.

When they were far enough ahead. Diennu left the guest house. Crouching and using the force to make herself look small. She stayed in the shadows, as she went down the path. Krillgan and Ludia had already stopped. He had put his two hands around her face and started kissing her.

Why did Ludia have to look like she was enjoying it?

When she came to the plants. Krillgan stopped kissing Ludia. Instead he looked into her eyes, while directing Diennu. Anyone watching would think that he was sharing romantic words with Ludia. Diennu found the plant he was directing her to. She shook the seed pod into the little pouch mother had given her. She told Krillgan that some seeds came out and are in the pouch. Krillgan told her to seal that pouch and put it away. Now she should take her other pouch and but some of the dirt at the bottom of the plant in it. Diennu asked him what she should use. She did not bring anything with her. Krillgan told her that he has a dagger in his boot. She can use that. Diennu asked him, why he had a dagger in his boot? Krillgan told her that since he was little, his parents had taught him that he should always be armed, even when you are in a friendly place. Diennu asked him, if he had a dagger when he was out playing with them? He told her he did not have a dagger than, he had a small knife. Just in case she went wild and crazy on him and he had to protect himself.

Because he had started kissing Ludia again, she pricked him in the leg with the dagger before putting it back.

Ludia noticed that he had suddenly stiffened and stopped kissing Krillgan to ask him, what was wrong? Krillgan told her, that Diennu had accidentally stuck him with his dagger, while putting it away. Ludia told him that she knew a good healer. Krillgan smiled at her, saying he might need a healer by the time Diennu is finished with him.

When Diennu was ready to leave. Krillgan told her that they would have to stay out here for a while before they head back. As she was leaving Diennu looked back at the couple. Now he had his arms around her, and she did not like where Ludia had placed one of her hands. She made it back to the guest house, and did not know whether to cry or sulk.

Mother Andriel put her arm around her and told her that she has no reason to be upset. Diennu said that they were enjoying their kissing. Now there was no reason for him not to marry her. Andriel told her that just because you kiss someone does not mean you will marry them. She had to kiss her cousin when she was small. Even though he wanted to marry her when he was older, she did not want to marry him.

Diennu asked her when she first kissed Father Chitrah. Andriel told her that they had been married for many months before they finally kissed on the lips.

"You mean you did not kiss him your first night?"

"We did not even sleep together the first night."

"But you are so much in love?"

Andriel and Diennu sat down together. Andriel kept her arm around her, and told her the condensed story of how she was forced to marry Chitrah, and how it was that she finally fell in love with him.

Krillgan and Ludia had stopped by the kitchen. So they could have a snack of tea and biscuits before going to bed. They had just returned when Andriel had finished the story. Diennu noticed that the skin around Ludia's lips was also red from their kissing. She did not sleep well that night. In the morning they said goodbye to all their new friends in the Dining hall.

The Clan Mother was waiting for them at the main gate. She told Krillgan and Ludia that they make a lovely couple.

She told Diennu, that she was just as skilled as her mother. She than leaned forward and whispered something in Diennu's ear.

They saw the look of shock on Diennu's face. Then Diennu asked her something, then she whispered some more.

When they were a good half day's ride away from the village, they stopped. Everyone but Diennu got down off their Rancor. Krillgan told her to make sure Yma knows that the plant likes being warm as well as humid, so it would not survive outside, near their waterfall. It likes lots of light, but cannot have direct sunlight.

Ludia asked her what the Clan Mother said.

"She told me that she enjoys watching the little creatures playing in the garden. Then she asked me to let Yma know that it was a fair trade for the ointment.

I asked her, if she could tell me what the properties of the plant are? She told me that when she was a young healer, that she took an oath not to divulge the properties of the plant to anyone outside their clan, until all the healers agree. She than told me that Yma was a smart healer, and should have no difficulty figuring out the plant's properties."

Krillgan touched her leg, "We miss you already."

"And I miss you."

With that, she rode Protector back to their village, to deliver the seeds and soil to elder Yma.

Krillgan and Ludia had already talked to My Friend and Strongman. While they were still at the main village of the Misty Falls Clan. Krillgan would ride My Friend, while Ludia and Mother Andriel would ride Strongman, until they made it back to their village. They did not think it was worthwhile for Diennu to try and come back with Protector and reunite with them.

Back at the Misty Falls Clan the Clan Mother called all the healers to a meeting. She told them that their arrogance had driven away a very important person, who could have bestowed a great blessing on them. The healers thought she was talking about Krillgan, they heard rumours that he had been healing people while he was here, but they did not believe any of it. He had only used their healing lab once, while he was there. With all the healings attributed to him, he would have been in there day and night since he arrived. The Clan Mother continued, saying this lady had great influence over all the clans. Now the healers were confused. The Clan Mother said that because she did not bless them, they may have been cursed. Then she told them that they could have learnt a lot from the male Sister, Krillgan. He is probably the greatest healer in the entire history of Dathomir. Now they thought their Mother was crazy to make such a claim. Their Mother told them that she herself had verified more than a hundred individual healings. She started listing all of the healings he performed that she knew about. She explained in what capacity his companions assisted him. They protested that he had been in their lab only one time, so could not have done any of those healings. She told him that he does not need to use the lab for any of his healings, except in special circumstances. She told them that Mother Andriel, who made most of the medicines was more comfortable working in their kitchen, where she had the entire kitchen staff more than willing to assist her. Not only that, he had performed some simple healings right under their noses. But their arrogance made them blind to what they were seeing. The healers accused their Mother of exaggerating, and walked out on her. She broke down crying when they left. She had hoped to have been able to talk some sense into them.

The Sister that had given the tour, was attending to her. So she rushed into the room to try and console her. Her Mother instead told her to gather the elders. She no longer has the strength to continue.

When she went to each elder she told them that their Mother is hurting badly, so they knew this was not good news for the clan. When they assembled, she told them that Mother Andriel had been driven away from the clan by the arrogance of the healers without bestowing any blessing on them. The elders all knew who Mother Andriel is, and what she represents to them. This was not good. Then the Clan Mother told them that the healers had just accused her of lying, and walked out on a meeting with her. She told the elders that she has no strength to continue as the Clan Mother. She was resigning immediately. Then she turned to the elder in charge of the healers.

"What have you done to the healers? You taught me that humility was the most important characteristic a healer could have. Why have you not taught them humility?"

The elder looked at her dumbfounded, "I did not teach them humility, and they are healers? That is bad. I did a very bad thing. I hurt the clan, and I should be punished!"

Now the elder in charge of training healers, was the oldest of all the elders. The other elders were little girls when she was already an elder. It was only now that they realised, that she was not completely there.

Why had the healers not told them? The elder suddenly stood up. She told the other elders that she must say goodbye to her family before she leaves. The elders let her go, they had a good idea where she was going. They told the Clan Mother that they do not accept her resignation. She still has too much work to do. The elders will deal with the misguided healers.

They also told her that Mother Andriel was in the garden the other day talking to one of their Sisters. She was telling her about the different plants, and about how to minister to people. They believe that Mother Andriel had found a way to bless the clan after all. The Clan Mother now had the responsibility of training this warrior to be a healer. This way, when in a few years, when she becomes an elder, the clan will have a new Clan Mother, who is both a warrior and a healer.

When the ancient elder left the others, she headed to the gardens. When she encountered the healers, she called them a bunch of Nightsisters.

"You broke Mother's heart when you called her a liar."

This comment from their elder was worse than a slap in the face. They tried to defend themselves by saying they did not say that Mother was a liar, they just said she exaggerated.

The elder said that to a Mother it is the same thing. They do not exaggerate and they do not lie.

The healers said that the things Mother was saying was impossible. The elder told them that just because they did not want to believe the truth, does not mean that it is not the truth. This is one of the things she has taught them.

Now they have hurt the Mother, and through them, she has hurt the clan. So now she must go.

They asked her, where was she going? She told them the only place she can go. She was going to the Valley of Shadows, to establish a home of light.

The healers were terrified. No one returned from the Valley of Shadows. It was a place they were forbidden to go. They pleaded to the elder that she not do this. She told them she must. She has done something an elder should never do. She has hurt the clan. Now her ashes cannot provide nourishment for the garden as so many of her family has.

She must say goodbye to them, and be on her way. The healers in desperation approached the Sister that was considered the leader of all the warriors. They told her that the ancient elder has gotten it in her head that she must go to the Valley of Shadows. Can she send warriors to go with her? She told them that warriors were not equipped to fight the things that are found there. They are healers, they were taught how to use the force in ways that warriors were never taught. They were in a much better position to help the ancient one. They said that no one has ever returned from the Valley of Shadows. The warrior told them, that there would not be a loss to the clan if they never returned. The healers did not like her rebuke. They asked her if she had no place in her heart for the ancient one. The Sister told them that all the warriors do. Who was there when all their babies were born? When they were children, who did they go to when they had a cut, or scraped a knee, or had a bloody nose? They all care about the ancient one, but the elders have sent word that they are not to get involved. This is a matter for the healers only.

After the healers left, the old warrior muttered to herself. Now she has to go talk to one of her best young warriors. She had received word that she now wants to be a healer. How did she get that silly notion into her head?

As they approached the Great Canyon, a Sister that had been out hunting with her Rancor encountered them. This Sister had been to hear the Singing Mountains. So she recognised the Builder's wife. She rode ahead as quickly as she could, to warn everyone that she is coming. Then she returned with a group of Sisters to act as an honour guard.

The young Sisters that were with her were very interested in the young man in the group. He must be the male Sister the Singing Mountain Clan was training. They wondered if he was bathed in berry juice as a baby to turn out so purple. The Sister had warned them to treat the group with the utmost respect. So no one had the courage to ask him.

When they dismounted from their Rancor in the area indicated by the Sisters. Krillgan took Ludia by the hand. Ludia was surprised, but did not mind. She was glad that Diennu was not there to see it.

Mother wondered if this is something he learnt from holding hands with Gwenlath, or was there more to it. Whatever the reason, it did stop the Sisters from the Great Canyon Clan from flirting with him. When they went to visit with the Clan Mother, she also noticed, but did not say anything. She mentioned that at the last Council of Mothers, she was told to expect four of them. Ludia told her that her cousin Diennu had to return to the clan for a sudden urgent matter. Because it did not require all of them to return. They decided to press on, before returning to the clan themselves.

The Clan Mother thanked them for gracing them with their presence. She told them that if there was anything she could do to make their stay more enjoyable, they should let her know. Krillgan told her that at some point they will need to go to the artisans' village. Father Chitrah had asked him to contact an artisan there about some business. But before they do that, can her healers take them on a tour of the medicinal plants they have available. The Clan Mother was expecting this request from the healer. She asked if they can wait to do that tomorrow, as there would be a lot of ground they need to cover. After they have settled into the guest house. She has picked a Sister to take them around the village to show off all the things the Builder designed and helped them build.

Andriel knew Chitrah had done more work here with this clan, than in any of the other clans, and was very proud of it. So she did want to see it all.

There was no pressing need to go visit the seamstresses. The guest house was laid out just like the other two they had stayed in. This time Mother Andriel decided that she would share the bed with Ludia, and let Krillgan have a bedroom to himself. There was no way she would let the two of them share a bed, unless they were married. They found a Sister waiting for them just outside the guest house. Again Krillgan took Ludia's hand as they went on the tour. The guide was impressed with the intelligent questions they asked her. Obviously they were familiar with the Builder's work. After the tour, she took them to the dining hall. She told Krillgan and Ludia of a place couples like to go to after dinner. Krillgan asked her if this was a place that Mother Andriel could accompany them, or would this be awkward for the other couples. The Sister was surprised by this question, she thought that they would want to be alone. She told them of another place that the three of them could go for a pleasant walk. When she started walking away, the Sister realised that it made sense that they would want to take the Builder's wife with them. It would be wrong for them to leave her all alone, in a place she had never been to before. She still had things to learn about being a good host.

They found the people friendly in the dining hall, and had many offers for them to join one group or another. The groups that were no picked took no offence, there was always another time. The Sisters asked them if they would be taking part in the dance exhibition that was coming up in a couple of days. Ludia and Krillgan both said they would like to. The Sisters pointed out the Sister they would need to talk to. She would also like to know how much experience they have dancing. Because she wants to start off with those who are still learning, and progress to the more experienced ones.

Ludia liked that arrangement, but it also meant more dancers, and a longer night. Krillgan asked mother if he could wear a shirt this time. Andriel told him that she would see what she could come up with. When they approached the Sister after dinner. She told them that she was hoping that they would sign up to dance for them. She was also hoping that they were more experienced dancers, and had reserved a slot for them, one right after another, near the end of the exhibition.

The next day they found the healers very friendly. They were impressed that the Builder's wife was also a healer, even though she wasn't a force user. They told Krillgan that they had heard that he can heal in an unusual way. They asked him if it was true. Krillgan told them it was true. They told Krillgan and Mother Andriel about a patient they had with a chronic pain, was there anything he could do. He asked them if they knew what was causing the pain. They said they believed that it was because some joints had worn out. It appeared to be a form of arthritis. Krillgan told them that he did not mind checking the patient out. So on their way back to the healer's lab. They stopped at a home.

There were actually two patients. An elderly couple. He had worked the fields all his life, and she had helped out in the kitchen. They had fallen in love when they were young, and lived their whole life together. They have children, and grandchildren, and greatgrandchildren. They now found it painful to do just about anything. When Krillgan started using the force to look at their skeletons, he told Ludia, and Mother Andriel to touch him. The healers asked Ludia, why he asked her that. Ludia told them that they can see a little of what he is seeing through the force. They have used it to set broken bones, and relieve pressure on inflamed joints, before he has started to heal them. The healers did not know it was possible and some of them tried it. They were surprised that it worked for them too. After he finished the examination. Mother Andriel told him that she did not see anything that would stop him from healing them. Krillgan agreed but he was concerned about how much healing oil he would have in him by the time he was finished. There was damage to a lot of their joints. He might not be able to make the ointment, unless he bleeds off some oil first, to use in making it later. Mother Andriel agreed, she also suggested that he do it in two stages, he can start now, than return after dinner, after he renewed the nutrient supply in his blood. The healers heard the three of them talking, but did not know what they were talking about. Finally Krillgan asked them if they had a ceramic cup or small bowl he could use. They thought he was planning to make something there to give to the patients. They had nothing with them. The elderly lady said that she had a small glass cup in the kitchen area of their house, which they had from the artisans' village, and asked if that would do. One of the healers went to get it. They were surprised that Krillgan stuck the fingers from one hand in the cup, then suddenly an oily substance appeared. They asked him what it was. He told them that it is a healing oil that he wants to mix with the essential oils he will extract from the leaves of the plants he picked earlier. He wants to make up a healing ointment with it later in the lab, to give to their Mother. When he was satisfied he had enough, he gave the cup to Ludia for safekeeping. Then he placed one had on each of the seniors at the same time.

The wife asked her husband, if it was as good for him, as it was for her. He said he did not know, because he could not tell what she was feeling. What he could feel was his pain going away. Krillgan continued healing them until he sensed that the oil in him was being consumed much faster than it was being produced. He asked the old couple to rest and not move. They are feeling much better, but their healing is not complete. If they move now they can damage some of what has been repaired. A few of the healers checked what had changed in the couple, and were amazed by the amount of restoration they saw in the joints over such a short time. The healers led Krillgan to their lab, and watched intently as he extracted the oil he wanted from the leaves, and mixed it with the healing oil he had Ludia hold on to. They asked him why he was mixing the oil he has, with the plant oil. He told them that the healing medicine in the plants oils, compliments the healing oil he can produce, so it makes the little he can produce spread over more applications.

After giving the vials of healing ointment to their Clan Mother, he told the healers that using all the vials to help an elderly couple like the one he is helping, would be a waste of the ointment. They would only be partially healed, then degenerate very quickly. They asked him, why he was helping the couple? He told them that they were the ones who brought him to the couple. So one of them must have a personal connection to them. Sometimes personal connections are more important than efficient practical use.

One of the older healers admitted that she had a personal connection to the couple. When her mother was killed, her father could not handle her, so this couple took her in as one of their own. All their children became her brothers and sisters. She always had someone to play with. When the force started to manifest in her life, she was still allowed to play with the oldest children, because they could react quicker and were not as easily injured as the younger ones. It forced her to gain control of the force, far more quickly than most girls her age, because she did not like hurting the people who had opened their hearts up to her. It was also because of that that she wanted to be a healer. She was so frustrated, that with all her skills, she could not heal the parents, only manage their pain. Krillgan asked her what she was going to do with all her free time once he completes their healing. She laughed and said she would rest. Coming from a large family, it won't be long before someone else will be coming to her for help.

The next day Andriel went and found the seamstress's shop. They made room for her, and let her have access to their materials and supplies. They apologised that no one could help her because every Sister in the village wanted something done to their outfit before the dance exhibit. Andriel was not concerned, she should be able to make a simple shirt for Krillgan, even without anyone's help. Krillgan and Ludia had told her that they were going to get the Rancor, and go and find a secluded opening in the woods somewhere to practise their martial arts, since a lot of their dance moves were toned down martial arts moves. They thought that the Rancor would prefer spending the day watching them, rather than spend all day staring at the palisade.

Now a couple of girls that were training to be Sisters decided to follow them. They had seen the two of them holding hands, and were expecting them to find a quiet place to kiss and make out. So they snuck through the woods making sure they stayed a good distance away from their Rancor. They were surprised to see them first stretch individually, then help each other stretch. Then it looked like they did a whole series of strange dance moves, using their hands and feet, side-by-side. They had never seen two dancers doing the same dance at the same time before. They thought that someday they would dance like that for the people. They were really enjoying what they were seeing. It was certainly better than what they thought they would see. Then the girls became frightened. One of the adults must have said something bad to the other, because now they were fighting. It first looked like they were trying to slap each other in the face, and when they could not do that they started kicking. They were screaming at each other, though the girls could not make out what they said. The girls were upset, and decided to go get help. They could not understand what went wrong, they seemed like a nice happy couple, and he was supposed to be a friendly healer. A lot of people were talking about them.

When they ran back to the village, they were crying when they found their instructor. They told her about following the nice couple from the Singing Mountain Clan. Because they thought that they were sneaking off to find a quiet place to kiss. But instead they started dancing. Then one of them must have said something bad to the other, because they started fighting. They begged their instructor to come quickly with them to make them stop. The instructor could see that both girls were visibly shaken by what they saw, so she followed them not knowing what she could do against two Sisters from another clan, with one of them trained as a warrior. When they ran past a couple of older Sisters, she told them to follow along, something has upset the girls.

They met Krillgan and Ludia coming out of the woods riding on their Rancor. They both looked like they had just completed a very hard training session. The instructor held up her hand. Showing that she wanted them to stop and talk. When they dismounted off the Rancor. Krillgan noticed the girls looked upset, and asked what was wrong. The instructor ask him point blank if they had been fighting, because the girls claimed that they saw them fighting. Krillgan told her that they were fighting, and this is what the girls probably saw. With that he gave a yell, and started to try and attack Ludia with his hands. But Ludia was able to block every attack with her arms, but it was forcing her to step backwards. Then he stopped and took a step back. This time Ludia gave a yell, and started attacking Krillgan with her hands, while he blocked her with his arms, while she was forcing him to step backwards. When Ludia finished her attack, she took a step backwards. Then the two of them put fist to palm and bowed towards each other. All the local Sisters stared at them. So one of the girls asked him if he was upset with his friend. He told her no, they were just practicing. Then he got down on one knee and asked the girl to give him a hug. Ludia did the same for the other girl. The one girl almost started crying again, when she told him how scared they were when they started fighting. Krillgan told her he understood. He started crying the first time he saw his parents doing something similar, until he learnt that they were only play fighting. Then it did not bother him anymore. The other girl said that she was glad they were not really fighting, because they look like a couple that really loves one another. Krillgan looked at Ludia and told the girl that they are. The other Sisters asked them if they could show them more. Krillgan told them that they were not supposed to show them even the little bit that they did. They only did it for the girls' sake, so they could calm down. The Builder has forbidden them from showing this to anyone. They asked him why? He told them that because of their territorial disputes. If you used this fighting technique in conjunction with the force, it would be very easy for one Sister to kill another, just using her bare hands.

"So you were not using the force when you were play fighting?"

"If we did our arms would probably be broken right now."

"Why did the Builder train you, when he will not train us."

Krillgan did not want to say that it is because he is the Builder's son.

"To make a long story short. It is because the only ones that the Singing Mountain Clan are in a territorial dispute with, is the Nightsisters. The Builder believes that a Sister from the Singing Mountain Clan, has a much better chance of surviving an ambush by Nightsisters, if she knows this fighting technique, so that she can keep fighting, and defending herself, even without an obvious weapon."

Ludia added, "Besides you already know some of the basic technique. It is the base for a lot of the dance moves that you use."

Krillgan and Ludia ran back to the village with the Sisters while the Rancor followed behind. After the Rancor were safe in their den. Krillgan took the hand of one girl while Ludia took the hand of the other. They all went to have dinner together.

After dinner, Andriel showed Krillgan the shirt she made him. It was similar to the tops a lot of the dancers wore. It was short sleeved, and only came down to his diaphragm leaving his belly and the small of his back exposed. Krillgan was expecting a shirt he could tuck into his pants.

"At least they will not call you the topless Sister anymore." When both women laughed after that remark, Krillgan suspected that there was some sort of conspiracy going on.

At the dance exhibition that evening, Ludia received a strong ovation from the crowd, showing they appreciated her dance. When Krillgan finished his dance with his ground shaking climax. They gave him a standing ovation. Andriel leaned over and told Ludia, that it was because they had never seen a guy dance before.

The next day they went to the artisan's village. Because so many people from other clans visit this village. They have guest accommodations, just like they do at the main village. When the people of the village saw Mother Andriel, they welcomed her as a royal celebrity. She is the Builder's wife. It was his genius that has enabled them to do the many things that they do. Though their main industry is glass works, they have artisans from every clan working in almost every median possible. When they were taken on a tour of the facility, they came to one room where there was a rock sculptor, a wood sculptor, and a metal sculptor, all creating a sculpture based on the same nude female model. Andriel was glad that this was not happening when Chitrah was here. When Krillgan looked at each sculpture, he could not understand why the nude model was there. None of the sculptures resembled a naked female body. When he asked their guide about it afterward, she turned her nose up at him.

"Its's obvious you do not understand art, or inspiration."

Then she walked away from him. This just made Ludia and Andriel, laugh. After that Krillgan stayed behind the two women, and let them ask the questions.

After the tour, Krillgan went to find the artisan his father had told him about. To see if he could make him a couple of stone knives. Andriel produced the pair she had for an example. Ludia's eyes went wide when she saw the stone knives Mother Andriel had. She quietly asked her if she has always had the stone knives on her. Andriel told her, "Yes!" Ludia than asked her if she sleeps with them, because she never saw her remove them before going to bed. Andriel laughed, then told her that that would be telling. Now Ludia was not sure she wanted to sleep in the same bed with Mother Andriel anymore. That pain in the back she gets sometime when she is sleeping, might turn out to be a stone knife.

After examining Andriel's knives, the artisan promised that he could produce something similar with a twist. Then let them know how long he thought it would take him.

As they were walking through the room containing many of the glass creations. They found a flower in a pot under a clear glass dome. The glass dome was around 1/3 of a meter in diameter, and 2/3 of a meter in height, with a knob on top so that it could be lifted up.

Krillgan looked around for someone to tell him about the glass dome. He found the young lady who had taken them on the tour. When he showed her what he was interested in. She thought that there may be hope for him yet. The flower is from a jungle that one of the Sisters had been to. They were not able to get it to grow very well, until they placed it under the glass dome, where it has thrived. The glass sculptor claimed he was inspired to create it after he saw her modeling. Now Krillgan understood her reaction to his question. He asked her if it would be possible to speak to the sculptor about it. She told him that she would go get him, if he is not busy. After she left, Krillgan told Ludia that he could not see how looking at a naked body could inspire this. Ludia told him that maybe the sculptor was only looking at a specific part.

When she said that, Krillgan blushed, and Andriel laughed. Krillgan admitted that he never thought of that. Ludia patted him on his shoulder, and told him that there may be hope for him yet.

When the young lady brought the sculptor, Krillgan asked him if he could make a few more of the glass domes. If they could be made larger, both in diameter and height, that would be better. The sculptor asked him how many he was looking for. Krillgan told him, that he would like at least four. The sculptor told him that it would require a lot of glass and would be quite heavy. Krillgan asked, if the heaviness was a difficulty in manufacturing the domes? The sculptor said that the manufacturing would not be a factoring problem, the difficulty would be in handling and transporting it afterwards. Krillgan used the force to gently lift than lower a glass sculpture next to the sculptor that had a lot more glass. He told the sculptor that he was sure that any of the clan Sisters would be willing to assist him with handling the domes once they are finished. Once they knew it was for the male healer, and the Builder's wife. The sculptor bowed to Mother Andriel, "I am pleased that I can create something for the wife of the man, who made many of my works of art possible." Then he asked Krillgan what he can offer in compensation. It will take a lot of manpower and resources to make them. Ludia spoke up, "I am the daughter of the Clan Mother for the Singing Mountain Clan. Our clan is willing to offer you anything we have available, as compensation for the manufacture of these items. Within reason." All the sculptor wanted to know was that the community would be fairly compensated. They have had more than one individual come through the display area, saying they would like to have this, and that, and that other thing. Only to find out later that they had no resources to compensate them with. Now he can approach the overseers, to ask them to free up the resources for this project. When they know that it is for the Builder's wife, and has the backing of the Singing Mountain Clan, the only thing that they will be concerned about is determining fair compensation. These are the types of projects the overseers like.

When they returned to the guest house. Both Andriel and Ludia, wanted to know what Krillgan had in mind, when ordering those four glass domes. Krillgan told them that the domes would provide the perfect growing environment for the seeds that Diennu has carried back to Yma. Ludia asked him if the four domes was for each of the clans who do not have the flower. Krillgan told her, that she was correct. Once Yma has figured out what the medicinal properties of the plant are, then it would be wrong not to share it with the other three clans. Both Ludia and Andriel believed that Mother would have no problem agreeing to provide whatever will be asked for, in compensation.

Since they would have some free time on their hands, while they waited for the projects to be completed. Andriel asked Ludia if she wanted to go model for the sculptors. Ludia blushed and said no. It was one thing being naked in a room full of naked Sisters for the Bonding Ceremony. When no one was really looking at their bodies. But to undress before a room full of strangers, just so they can be inspired by how your body looks, sends shivers up her spine. Andriel was pleased with her response. Since it appears to her, that Krillgan and Ludia are growing even closer than they were before. She wanted to make sure that Ludia is the right type of woman for her son.

When the stone knives were ready, just needing a proper handle. The artisan asked for them. He told them that he wants to dip the handle portion of the stone knives, in molten glass, then before the glass has solidified. Taking the thick string that is used as the handle wrap. Wrapping it so the first layer of string gets imbedded in the glass. This should provide a handle that is only slightly thicker than the blade itself, yet be safe and easy to handle. He invited them to come with him, to watch the handle being made. The furnace room where the molten glass was handled was very hot as expected. The glass handlers pulled a crucible of melted glass out of the furnace, and placed it on a stone table. The artisan was able to hold the blade of the knife with his bare fingers, since the stone does not transmit heat. If he had tried it with a metal blade he would have needed tongs and leather gloves. After the molten glass stopped dripping the artisan moved the knife to where his assistant was waiting. His assistant had the thick string soaking in cold water, so it would not burn up when it first touched the molten glass. When the master told him to start, he was holding the string so the center of the length of string would be the first part to touch the glass on the handle. He expertly wound the two ends of the string around the handle at once using the tension in the string to keep the handle stable. When the master told him there were enough layers of string he brought the two ends together and tied a knot. They would trim off the excess string after the handle was cool enough to touch. They repeated the same process with the second knife. The glass handlers placed the crucible of glass back in the furnace.

Now there was more than one project taking place in the furnace room. At the same time another group of glass handlers were pouring molten glass into a mold. Now there must have been some water in the mold, because some molten glass splashed out of the mold and hit an assistant in the arm causing him to scream. Krillgan instantly reacted. Taking the water that the string had been soaking in, and making a small water shield. He quickly moved to the assistant's side and placed the water shield on the wound where the molten glass had been, and fallen off, taking a layer of skin with it.

Krillgan was using the shield to remove the latent heat energy out of his wound. The wound was still hot enough, after the glass fell off, that Krillgan would have burnt his fingers if he had touched it.

When the assistant told Krillgan that he was starting to feel the cold. Krillgan took the water shield and threw it on the floor in front of the furnace. The shield had reverted to water before it touched the floor, and within less than a minute, it had completely evaporated. Krillgan than held the assistant's arm, and let three drops of healing oil drip onto the wound. With the first drop the pain was gone. By the time the third drop was absorbed the wound was completely healed. One of the overseers had witnessed the healing. He went to talk to the other overseers telling them that the male healer must have had some sort of vial of healing ointment, and it only took three drops of this ointment to heal the wound, without any hint of scarring.

When Krillgan left the furnace room. The overseer was waiting for him. He asked him if he could come with him. The other overseers would like to talk with him. They asked him about the healing he did, and whether he could make more of his healing ointment. Krillgan told them that making more ointment was not a problem. The hard part was cooling down the wound enough so that the ointment could work. The longer the heat energy is in the wound, the more damage it does to the surrounding tissue. So if you put the ointment on before the wound is cooled, you could use up three to four times the amount of ointment, than would have been used, if the wound had been cooled. They asked him if he could design something that they could use to help cool the wound. He told them that he would have to think about it, and would get back to them in a couple of days.

Krillgan went back and told mother and Ludia what the overseers had asked him to do. Andriel told him that this is going to be difficult, because anything left sitting in the furnace room for an extended period of time was going to be quite warm. So it had to be something that could be activated to cool down quite quickly when needed. It also had to be something that would just sit in the furnace room until needed. They did not have the luxury of time to run out of the furnace room than come back in. Then she came up to him, and kissed him on the forehead.

"I'm sure that you will think of something."

Ludia said that if it helps, she will do it too, and kissed him on the forehead.

After thinking for a long time, trying to remember what his father had taught him about refrigeration and cooling. Than thinking about what materials they had on hand. He decided that he had to do something with water. He decided to use a cylinder and seal it at one end and have a piston inside of it. They would have to be made out of soft metals to provide an airtight metal to metal seal. He would have a water and air mixture in the cylinder. When they needed it to cool. They would pull the piston levering it, and locking it, so that there would be a vacuum in the cylinder. The water will want to evaporate drawing heat energy from the metal cylinder and anything that the cylinder touches. He presented his design to the overseers. They brought in their best metal worker and asked if he could make it. After looking at it for quite a while, he decided he could. A few days later he let them know that it was ready. Krillgan added the water to the cylinder with the overseers watching. They left it in the furnace room over lunch, than came back to try it out. They offered it to Krillgan to do the honours. Krillgan refused, because he can use the force to pull the piston and lock it. He suggested that one of them try it, because they would be of around the same strength, as anyone working in the furnace room. So one of the overseers pulled on the piston, locking it in place. It was difficult, but manageable. The cylinder started cooling right away, getting colder over a short period of time. It did not get as cold as a mountain stream, but it was quite cool. They may need to use more than one cylinder to cool a burn, but it was better than what they had hoped for. The metal worker wanted to keep some near the forge for the same reason.

The overseers told Krillgan that his design would normally be considered enough compensation, for all the work he has asked of them. But he is the only one that they know of, that is capable of making the healing ointment. They would like one vial for each of the glass domes that they were making for him. Krillgan asked them if anyone there could make a Rancor cart, so that he could take the glass domes with him. The overseers told him that a Rancor cart would be ready, when the glass domes would be finished. So Krillgan agreed.

Krillgan went out looking for plants that were good for healing burns. The ointment he made was slightly different than what he had been giving to the Clan Mothers, because it was designed specifically for healing burns. When the overseers announced to the community the compensation that they were able to get from the male healer. They all agreed that they received the better end of the deal. They knew that the Builder was his guardian, so they gave him the honorary title of "Son of the Builder". Mother Andriel told them that the Builder will be proud to hear that they awarded him that title.

When Diennu arrived back at her main village, she gave the seeds and the soil sample to Yma. Passing along all the information that Krillgan had asked her to. They went together to the Clan Mother, and Diennu told her everything that they did to obtain the plant, and the Clan Mother of the Misty Falls Clan's reaction. Yma was quite upset that it was the healers of the Misty Falls Clan, and not their Clan Mother that had been holding out on them. When Diennu related how the healers had received them, and how their warriors were desperate for Krillgan's help. They understood that their healers were negligent in many areas.

Amblin-Elu and Butashe, could not help but notice that Diennu was upset by the diversion Krillgan and Ludia provided her. When they were at home, Diennu told her mother that she believed she has lost Krillgan. Butashe reminded her about what Krillgan had told her when they had put flowers in his hair. Then she asked her daughter why she had declared herself to be celibate until marriage after Ludia had, and the whole clan knew that Mother wanted Ludia and Krillgan to marry. Diennu blushed, and told her mother that part of the reason she did it was because some of the older Sisters were teasing Ludia about her decision, and she wanted to be there to support her best friend. The other part was, because she secretly hoped that Krillgan would choose to marry her. Butashe hugged her daughter and told her that what Mother Andriel said was true. Just because they kissed does not mean they will marry. She told her daughter that her father was not the first young man that she kissed. Diennu wanted to hear more, but Butashe blushed, and told her that she will save it for another time.

The first thing Yma did was to analyse the soil. She was surprised to discover that it was the same composition as what was common in the Rolling Red Hills. So she sent a runner to the Clan Mother of the Red Hills Clan asking her for half a dozen grain bags of soil. The Clan Mother thought it was an unusual request, but sent it anyway. She knew that whatever Yma was working on, she would share the results. Krillgan, Ludia, and Mother Andriel arrived back before the soil did. Yma was thrilled to see the glass domes, and gave Krillgan high praise before the Clan Mother for his forethought.

When it came time to make their full report. Mother Andriel asked if Father Chitrah could sit in. Since they were waiting for Diennu, as she was part of the report, Mother had no problem sending a Sister to go get Father Chitrah. When they finished, Amblin-Elu told all three of her young Sisters, that their conduct and ingenuity were exceptional. She told Diennu, that she deserves the title of 'Fire Lady', and would be involved in training all future Sisters in the fire element. Giving her a hug. She told Ludia, that she was an outstanding ambassador for the Singing Mountain Clan, to both the settlements and the clans. As her mother and her Clan Mother she is very proud of her. Giving her a hug. To Krillgan she said that he did not exceed her expectations of him, but met them in every way. For him she set a very high standard. He deserved the title of "Son of the Builder", and would see to it that all the clans recognised it as well, at the next Council of Mothers. Then she gave him a hug. She hugged Mother Andriel for being there with them, and was happy to hear that there was a little Andriel out there. Chitrah was so proud of his wife and son, that he had an arm around each of them as they walked home. When they entered the house, Krillgan asked his father if he could talk with him. Both parents sensed that this had something to do with the trip.

Father and son went up to the patio to sit and talk, while mother told them that she would prepare them some tea, and make sure that they were not disturbed. Krillgan asked his father what he would do about arranging a marriage for him. Chitrah told his son that he would look at all the potential candidates. Make note of the ones that he showed an interest in, and the ones that showed an interest in him. He would look at what he knew about their character, to make sure they were the type of woman that he wanted to marry his son. Then he would discreetly inquire about whether the young lady's family would be acceptable to a marriage union. So far he has narrowed the candidates down to three potential mates for him. Krillgan had thought there were only two, so he was curious as to who the third one was. He asked his father who they are. Chitrah named them in alphabetical order. Diennu, Ludia, and Rasha. All three women love him, only he has not had an opportunity to sound out Rasha's father Chrashan. Krillgan was embarrassed that he had forgotten about Rasha. Krillgan asked his father why he thought Rasha was a good candidate. Chitrah reminded him that according to Kindell's prophecy, he would be spending most of his adult life off of Dathomir. Rasha has off world experience. That does not mean that Ludia, and Diennu, could not adapt if they married him. But they will always want to come back to Dathomir. Krillgan asked him what they would do next to select a bride. Chitrah said that at this point all that he and Andriel could do is randomly pick one, and start formal negotiations with the young lady's parents. Hoping that they had picked the right one. Krillgan was a little disappointed, he was hoping his father would have had more insight into choosing a bride. He asked his father to help him choose who he should marry. At this point Andriel showed up with the tea. Chitrah told him that the only help he can give him, is for him to sit down and to look at each young lady individually. He should make up a list of reasons why he should marry her, and why he should not marry her. After he has completed the lists, he should throw them away, and ask his heart who he should marry. Krillgan looked at Andriel.

"Mother can you help me?"

"Krillgan, I cannot think of anything else I can add to what your father just said. Except that your father and I believe that you will make the best choice."

Krillgan got up, and leaped off the patio to the ground. He knew that Erin and Aliyanna were both old enough that they would not try it themselves. He wanted to be alone for a while. Chitrah and Andriel just sat there holding hands. They felt for their son, and the difficult decision he has to make.

Krillgan did not come for dinner that evening. When Ludia and Diennu asked about him, Andriel and Chitrah told them that it was best if they let Krillgan be by himself. He has a lot of things on his mind that he needs to sort out. He is not trying to hide from them like he did before the one Bonding Ceremony. Both young ladies blushed, because they remembered how embarrassed Krillgan felt, and why. They promised to leave him alone. The next morning word arrived about the invitation for Krillgan from the Nightsisters. When Krillgan did not show up for breakfast, Ludia and Diennu wondered if that was the reason why. When they saw Mother Andriel and Father Chitrah they asked them if Krillgan knew about the invitation. They said that a Sister came by that morning to tell him, and he left the house shortly after she did.

The Sisters asked their Mother, if they can have a meeting that evening, to discuss what they can do to help Krillgan get ready for the Nightsisters. Mother agreed, and told them that they can let Krillgan know he does not have to attend. Diennu and Ludia did not know what to do that day, since they were so used to doing everything with Krillgan. They both decided that it would not hurt them to have some alone time themselves.

Late that afternoon, Diennu was surprised when Krillgan found her. He asked her to sit down, and sat beside her. He took her hand and told her that she was the first to know, that he was going to ask Ludia to marry him. She asked him if this was why he wasn't at dinner last night, or at breakfast that morning. He said it was.

"It was not fair to you or Ludia to keep you both guessing and hoping."

Diennu thanked him for considering her. Tears started coming to her eyes. Krillgan told her, "How could I not consider you. I love you, and wished that I could marry both of you. You don't know how much this hurts me to tell you that I will not be marrying you."

Diennu could see the tears in his eyes, and knew that he was talking from the heart.

"Is this because you kissed her, and not me?"

"No! This happened before that. When we went to the settlement together to help that poor man that was mauled by the Kamurith. I think the Force wanted me to see that we worked very well together. It seemed that whole trip. That Ludia and I were being pushed together, and you and I were being pushed apart."

Diennu said she felt the same way. That was why she was so upset that it was Ludia that got to kiss him. Krillgan asked her if she was upset with him. She wiped the tears from her eyes, and said no, and that she still loves him and Ludia, and hopes everything will go well for them.

Krillgan stood up, and helped Diennu up. He gave her a hug, and told her that her mother was ready to tell her the story about her first kiss, and how she agreed to marry her father. Diennu asked him if he spoke to her mother today. Krillgan told her no. He talked to her last night, because he had some questions he wanted to ask her.

Krillgan found Ludia walking through their field of wildflowers. He approached her and gently spoke her name. She turned quickly, with a smile on her face.

"Your parents said that you needed to be alone, to figure some stuff out, so I came here to walk through some good memories. Have you figured out what you needed to figure out?"

"Yes I have. Is it okay if I ask you something?"

"Of course it is. How can I help you?"

Krillgan had been approaching Ludia, the whole time he had been talking to her. When he was facing her, he took both her hands in his. He went down on both knees surrounded by the wildflowers.

"Ludia. Will you honour me, by becoming my wife?"

Ludia got down on both her knees, "Krillgan. It will be my honour to have you as my husband."

They sealed their commitment to each other with a kiss. Then they kissed some more.


	14. Chapter 14

©2016

They would have continued kissing if Krillgan's stomach hadn't started growling. He admitted to Ludia that he had not had anything to eat all day. She got up and started dragging him to the village.

"I will not have my husband-to-be, starving to death, before we are married."

The people in the dining hall were surprised to see Krillgan and Ludia enter hand in hand, and no sign of Diennu. Krillgan held up a hand, so everyone stopped talking, so that they could hear what he had to say.

"I want you all to know that Ludia has just agreed to marry me."

Everyone started talking at once. As they made their way towards the kitchen, people would reach out their hand to congratulate them. When they grabbed their dinners, Ludia took more than she normally would, so she could top up his plate without them having to get up. While they were eating, people would come up to them to congratulate them. Things suddenly grew quite when Diennu entered the hall. She went and got her dinner and approached the couple. Ludia and Krillgan stood up as she approached. Since she was approaching on Ludia's side of the table. She placed her plate beside Ludia's, and hugged her best friend, congratulating her. They sat down together, and Diennu asked her friend how he proposed. When they sat down, people started talking again. Apparently some were worried that there might be fireworks.

After Ludia told Diennu, how Krillgan proposed. She quietly ask Diennu how Krillgan had broken it to her. She could tell that Diennu already knew, before she entered the dining hall. Ludia had taken her hand, so Diennu felt comfortable telling her. When she finished. Ludia hugged her, and thanked her for being her best friend. Diennu told Ludia and Krillgan, about the meeting that evening for the Sisters. They were going to be talking about the best way possible, for them to help Krillgan to prepare for the Nightsisters' Recruiting Party. So unless Krillgan had any suggestions for them, he did not have to come.

Krillgan told them that he wanted to talk with mother and father after dinner, so if they wanted to see him after the meeting, they can find him with them. If not, he will meet them for breakfast.

At the meeting a number of Sisters made proposals that they thought would help Krillgan, including having a Bonding Ceremony. The Clan Mother told them that the last thing Krillgan needs right now, is to see a lot of naked women. He will see a lot of that at the Nightsisters' Recruiting Party. After all the trouble they had accepting Krillgan as a Sister, they still have to acknowledge that he is a man. Men bond differently than woman. They bond by doing things with them. That is why his relationship with Ludia and Diennu is so strong. They have been bonding most of their life. Then she addressed Ludia directly.

"Is it true what we heard? That you and Krillgan are now engaged to be married?"

"Yes he proposed to me this afternoon."

"Congratulations daughter. To the rest of you Sisters, that means that we cannot afford to leave Ludia and Krillgan alone, until after the Nightsisters' party. Diennu that means that you have a very difficult assignment for the next month. You have to be their chaperone."

She encouraged the other Sisters to actively engage Krillgan this next month. Challenge him to fighting stick duels. Practising the Martial arts with him. Critique his dancing routine, since he has altered it on the tour. If you are injured in practice, go to him first (that is something they already do). She reminded Kreen that berry season should be starting in a few days. She could challenge him to a berry picking contest.

Kreen told her it would not work. Whenever she picks berries with Krillgan, none of them end up in the berry pail. This made all the Sisters laugh. Then Mother suggested that it be a berry eating and picking contest. Kreen said that it would not be fair to Krillgan. She is a nursing mother. No one can out eat a nursing mother. More laughter from the Sisters. Mother told her that they need to have some contest were the winner gets to lick the berry juice off of little Kindell's face, and the loser has to change her diapers. Again the Sisters laughed. Kreen was sure that if they went berry picking together, Krillgan would not mind changing Kindell's diapers. He has always had a soft spot for children. After the meeting, Ludia and Diennu rushed over to Mother Andriel's home.

After dinner, Krillgan told his parents that he proposed to Ludia, and that she agreed to marry him. His parents had heard the rumour, but they were glad he came himself to tell them. He asked them what happens next, he was concerned that the Nightsisters' party that he was invited to, would interfere. They told him, that as his parents, it was there responsibility to talk with Ludia's mother, Amblin-Elu, to set a date, and to see that all the arrangements are being made. They asked him about the party he is invited to. He told them that the Sisters described it, just as Captain Richard had described it to them. It would start with the raping of the bride. All the food and drinks will be laced with aphrodisiacs to encourage sexual promiscuity of all participants. Normally the clans do not allow a Sister to attend that is under a vow of celibacy before marriage, to go. They will normally send another Sister in their place.

"Since I am the only male Sister, there is no one they could send in my place."

Andriel held her son, telling him that he would get through it. Reminding him that he has her blood in him to help him against all poisons. Chitrah reminded himself to ask Amblin-Elu for a Sister to help him to get to the pirate ship quickly. He needs to send a coded message to the Fenelar Phoenix through the Pirates Network. That they return to Dathomir as soon as possible. Chitrah was sure that Krillgan would need to leave Dathomir right after the party.

Krillgan was happy that Ludia and Diennu came over after the meeting. Diennu let Krillgan and Ludia be alone on the rooftop patio, she knew that if she was just engaged, she would want some alone time with her man. Ludia told Krillgan about the meeting, and told him that Mother does not want them to be alone until after the party. Diennu was not supposed to let them be alone even now, but she is a good friend, and said we should be. Diennu told mother and father about the meeting, and that Mother did not what Krillgan and Ludia to be alone. That she is supposed to be up on the patio with them. Andriel and Chitrah wondered what was bothering Mother. They need to have some alone time. They will need to talk with Mother about this.

Andriel asked Diennu, how she was doing, knowing Krillgan picked her best friend over her. Diennu admitted that it hurt a lot at first. Even though Krillgan was really nice about the way he told her. She had a nice long talk with her mother, and heard about her past relationships, and how she ended up marrying father. What blew her away was that mother had a list of every available guy in the clan who wanted to get married. She said that the Clan Mother is supposed to know everything about everyone, and she and her sister had been keeping tabs in case one of their daughters needed it. She has already told me about a couple of nice guys in the village who are near the end of their apprenticeship. She can arrange to have someone introduce me. She would not tell me which of them she preferred. They are not Krillgan, but they are both good men. She said that they would both make good husbands. Andriel gave her a big hug. She told her that she is a very beautiful young lady, both in the heart where it counts most, and on the outside. Some young man is going to be very fortunate if he can win her heart. Diennu thanked mother. Her words meant a lot to her. Eventually Andriel went upstairs and told the couple that Ludia needs to go home to bed, because Diennu is ready to fall asleep on her feet.

The next morning after breakfast, when Andriel and Chitrah went to talk with Amblin-Elu about wedding preparations, they were surprised to find the elders were already there. The elders were pushing Amblin-Elu to have Krillgan and Ludia get married right away. A celibate Sister should not be going to the Nightsisters' Recruitment Party. Mother countered, that it would be all right for a married man to go there and commit adultery? The elders said that Krillgan was strong and would not be unfaithful to his wife. But he does need her to vent the aphrodisiacs from his system. Mother countered that he would abuse her, and their relationship would be scarred for life, right from the beginning. Mother turned to Andriel and Chitrah, hoping that there was something in their traditions that would prevent them from getting married right away. Chitrah said that normally when you arrange a marriage, you have a courtship period where the couple get to know one another. But Ludia and Krillgan have been courting most of their life. Once the young man asks the young lady to marry him. The only delays is in arranging permission from the governing authorities. Renting facilities for both the wedding ceremony and reception afterwards. Sending out invitations, arranging catering. Getting the apparel ready that the bride and groom and the wedding parties would be wearing. Amblin-Elu could not understand most of what he said. So she asked him, how long it would take for the clan to do everything he said. He told her that from the time she gave permission, as the local governing authority, he believed that it would take two days to have everything ready. Andriel backed him up. The elders were all for it. But still Mother resisted. When Chitrah saw that she wasn't going to budge, he asked that at least she provide him with a Sister to help him get to the pirate ship and back. So that he could send a message to the Fenelar Phoenix to come to Dathomir. Mother checked which Sisters were nearby, and assigned one to help Chitrah, and they were off.

Andriel had another couple of requests that she wanted to ask the Clan Mother. Because of her tour, she wanted to dismantle her sewing machine and weaving loom. She wanted Chitrah to scan each part into his computer, so that he could get the trades people to recreate both machines, for each of the clans. She also wanted permission to design and build a special weaving loom. That can handle a wide variety of materials, including metal threads. The Clan Mother gave her permission for everything she wanted. She wanted Mother Andriel to leave, because the elders were not finished with her yet, and she did not want Mother Andriel to hear them arguing.

After she left, elder Hm-Shassa asked Amblin-Elu if this was because of Kindell's prophecy. Was she not willing to let her daughter go with her husband? Amblin-Elu told them, that if they were not married when he left. He would come back for her when he is able to support her. Right now they have nothing, they will be dependent upon others to support them. What type of life is that for a Sister? At least on his own Krillgan will be more flexible in providing for himself, until he can establish himself to the point where he can provide for a wife, and child, if she gets pregnant. Elder Jielu said that what she is saying sounds good. But the real reason was that she was not willing to let go of her daughter. Amblin-Elu looked down at the floor. "She is all I have. Is it wrong for a mother to want to hold on to her baby girl, just a little while longer?"

"Yes if it interferes with determining who is eligible to be the next Clan Mother. Besides, you have your sister, and your niece, and all of us."

"It's not the same, and you know it."

The elders made it clear what was at stake. But the Clan Mother had final say. Amblin-Elu knew she owed Mother Andriel and Father Chitrah an explanation on why she was opposed to Krillgan and Ludia marrying right now. Even if it wasn't the complete truth. When Mother was notified that Father Chitrah was back from sending the message, she asked Butashe if she knew where Diennu was. Butashe said that she was at Mother Andriel's home. Amblin-Elu invited her sister to come with her, as she spoke to Mother Andriel and Father Chitrah, about why she wants them to wait before they marry. Butashe was very curious about what her sister would say, because she heard all the arguments between her sister and the elders. When Mother entered Mother Andriel's home, she sent Diennu up to the patio to get Krillgan and Ludia. She did not say anything when a red faced Diennu went upstairs to get her friends. She told them all about Krillgan having to leave, after the Nightsisters' Recruitment Party, if Kindell's prophecy was going to continue to be fulfilled as it has so far. She told them that she was not ready to let her daughter go, knowing that she may never see her again. She knew Krillgan was very intelligent and resourceful, and would be able to survive out in the galaxy on his own. But it is a different matter altogether if he has a wife along, and the odds were in favour of them having a child within that first year. Mother Andriel and Father Chitrah assured her, that Krillgan would have access to enough credits that he and Ludia could live quite comfortably, even with a baby, for more than a year. As she said, Krillgan is resourceful, they doubted he would need that much time to find a position that brought him sufficient credits to support a family.

"On the surface that may be true, but remember Captain Chrashan said that the Republic and the Sith Empire were back, openly fighting one another. When Krillgan comes back for Ludia. I will have the confidence then to release Ludia into his care." With that Amblin-Elu left the home for them to talk about it. They knew that those were her conditions as Ludia's mother. That night, when Ludia came home, she knocked on her mother's bedroom door, asking if she could come in and talk with her. Amblin-Elu invited her into her bedroom, and patted the bed so that she knew to sit beside her mother.

"If I promise to wait for Krillgan's return. Will you let us get married now?"

Ludia saw her mother's eyes well up with tears. She kissed her daughter on her forehead.

"Daughter, you don't know what you're asking of me. You don't know this. But I would love to see you and Krillgan get married right now, and you would, if it wasn't for this Nightsisters' party. Trust me when I tell you this. I am doing this to protect you. I am not doing this to punish you, and I don't want to hurt you. I want you and Krillgan to have many happy years together. I also expect to be a grandmother more than once. Do you believe me?" Ludia looked into her mother's eyes. She saw no malice, only love, and a little pain.

"I believe you."

"Good girl. Now let me deal with the monsters."

Ludia did not know what her mother meant. But she knew her mother saw them. Therefore they must be real. What no one in the clan knew, not Butashe, her closest friend, not the elders who seem to know everything, not even her own mother when she was still alive, was that Riktob rarely made love to her. He had a dark streak in him, and liked to abuse her when he had sex with her. When they were in bed, she was no longer a person, she was his play thing. He made himself believe that she enjoyed what he did to her, but she did not. She put up with it because she loved him. In his own way he loved her. When he found out that she was pregnant with Ludia. He arranged for the entire village to come together and build a secret cottage for her. It was strong. The walls are thick. There is a small kitchen with a larger area adjacent to it where she could work with plants and potions. The main room was large enough that she could have a meeting with all the Sisters that were in town and not out on patrol, provided that they all stood. There was one comfortably sized bedroom. Carved into the bedrock under the cottage, with access from the kitchen, was a large cold storage area. Outside they planted beds of wildflowers. It is where most people go to pick flowers when there is a wedding coming up. She was into her third term of the pregnancy when Riktob brought her to it. With the whole village waiting there for her. Ludia was born in that bedroom. It's where she goes when she needs a break. But it did not negate what he did to her when they were alone in there. She was too ashamed and humiliated to tell anyone, especially when she became the Clan Mother. She had thought of permanently paralyzing him, from the neck down. But how to make it look like an accident. She would have lovingly cared for him for the rest of his life. But the force took him away from her instead. Now the elders want her daughter to be exposed to that type of monster, when she would be little more than a virgin. The monster would scar her for life. She had to protect her. If the elders knew what she did, they would understand.

Krillgan did not mind all the attention that his Sisters were giving him. Ludia made him show them the two stone knives that they made for him at the Great Canyon Clan. He had to explain to them that the knives can never be repaired if broken. You could not twist them or apply a sideways pressure on their blades. They were virtually undetectable, even with the sophisticated equipment they have in the galaxy. He had to demonstrate what he could do with them. The Sisters where surprised to find out that both Mother Andriel and Father Chitrah have a pair of them, each. But you would only ever see them if they or someone they loved was being attacked, and there was nothing else that they could do. They asked Ludia how she knew about them. Ludia blushed, and said that she only saw the pair that Mother Andriel had, when she suddenly made them appear to show the artisan that made Krillgan's knives. So that he could see what they wanted him to make. She told the Sisters that she was nervous sleeping the next few nights, being in the same bed with Mother Andriel. Since she never saw her remove them before going to bed. The Sisters laughed, because they thought she was making it up. They asked her what she was going to do about Krillgan's knives on their wedding night. She told them that he promised her, if she finds them, she is allowed to remove them from him. The Sisters laughed again. They told her that it was only an excuse for her to get her hands on his body. She innocently replied that she did not know she needed an excuse. Which made the Sisters laugh again.

When it was time to go to the Nightsisters' party, Krillgan was in the best shape of his life, he worked out with more Sisters in that month, than he had worked out with before. He broke more fighting sticks than he could have imagined. Before that month, he would have thought them unbreakable. He enjoyed going berry picking with Kreen and little Kindell. Yes he did change her diaper, and he even licked the berry juice off her face. She laughed when he did that, and enjoyed rubbing the fur on his face. He went for walks with Ludia, and Diennu, and some young men from the village that also wanted to meet him. They told him that they remembered being healed by him when he first came to the village, and were proud to hear all the good things that people kept saying about him. Krillgan felt very close with all his Sisters, what he liked the most, was that Ludia was always there, so the experience was always shared. She is quite the warrior.

On the day of the Nightsisters' Recruitment Party. Ludia kissed him goodbye. Diennu, his mother and father each hugged him. He was told by his Sisters not to take any weapons, because the Nightsisters will search him. He told them not to worry they will never find any. So they worried. He had quite the honour guard of Sisters accompany him to the gate and beyond. They were his rescue party if he ever gave the signal he was in distress and needed help. All he had to do was flash a force fireball on top of the Glass Mountain. They were all proficient with the water element, so even if there was a major high tide, which there will be. They expected that they could walk to the Glass Mountain on water shields. They all had a pair of Dathomirite daggers, and Father Chitrah assured them that the glass would be easily penetrated if the blades were activated, so that they could pull themselves up to the top of the mountain, catching the Nightsisters completely by surprise. They met the other invitees at the gate along with their escorts. Krillgan was surprised to see that Gwenlath from the Frenzied River Clan was among them. She told Krillgan that she convinced her Clan Mother that she was the best candidate from her clan who could help him. The other invitees told him that that was their instructions from their Clan Mothers as well. That was why they had so many escorts. They were ready to storm the mountain if they had to. The Sisters from the Singing Mountain Clan shared with the other Sisters how they were planning on scaling the Glass Mountain. The other Sisters felt that they could use the holes that they would make with their daggers to climb up after them. The Sisters divided up into two groups. Each group would wait at the trail head of one of the two trails leading down to the swamp. The invitees were supposed to meet the Nightsisters at the bottom of the east trail. The one closest to their village.

The Nightsisters had planned on doing a very thorough check of Krillgan's body, to make sure that he wasn't carrying any weapons, and to check what else he was packing. But when they saw all the Sisters standing at the top of the trail, they felt intimidated and only did a quick search. They asked Krillgan if he had any weapons on him. He said yes, and held out his hands. "With these hands, I can easily snap your neck." They laughed because they thought he was joking. They were each assigned a Nightsister as their guide. They were told to keep their hand on their shoulder, because they would be blindfolded. The trail had many twists and turns, and pits along the sides. The Nightsister that was Krillgan's guide, kept trying to get Krillgan's hand lower than her shoulder. She was hoping that he would grab one of her mountains. He would always stop whenever she would try to do that. He kept his hand at the height of her shoulder, and would not continue until he felt her shoulder under his hand. The tide started coming in, they were already starting to splash water as they walked. The Nightsisters' Mother had to tell her to stop and just be a guide, because they were in danger of being caught in the tide before they reached the mountain.

They completed the last part of the trip at double time because of that. The tide was already at knee height and climbing, by the time they entered the mountain. The Nightsisters removed their blindfolds so that they could climb the ramp as quickly as they could. It seemed like the water was trying to chase them as they quickly ascended towards the top of the mountain. When they reached the top, they were allowed a moment to rest. Then they were allowed to go to the edge of the mountain. The sun was setting. When they looked down, they saw that they were now on an island in the ocean.

They were led into the Nightsisters' Temple, where the party would take place. They were each assigned a place to sit. Before anything happened, a male slave came around with some bite sized treats. Krillgan was the first person he came to. He took one and put his tongue to it. There were no aphrodisiacs in it, but it was very salty. He knew that if he ate it, he would be very thirsty in no time. So he just left it on the table that was next to him. When the other Sisters saw his reaction, they refused it altogether. When the slave returned to the kitchen area. The Nightsisters' Mother hit him across his back with a whip, because she thought he should have been more persuasive. She made sure that she did not mark him anywhere with the hit, because she did not want any of her guests to know. The Nightsisters then entered the temple, and took their places. Many of the younger ones were scantily dressed, not leaving much to the imagination. Krillgan's guide was one of them. She caressed her mountains and ran her tongue around her lips when he looked at her. Finally the Mother's two lieutenants entered, followed by the Mother herself. Krillgan noticed that the one lieutenant had a scar across one cheek that looked like it may have been burnt, and a number of burns on the back of her arms. Her legs were covered but he bet there were burn marks there as well. This must be the Nightsister that tried to pretend that she was Amblin-Elu when she was younger. The only thing she had in common with the Clan Mother, was the colour of her hair. This woman had a masculine body, whereas the Clan Mother's body was very feminine, but very strong. She was no match for the Clan Mother. When the Nightsisters' Mother entered, she seated herself on what looked like a throne. The temple floor was layered, with the clan Sisters seated on the lowest level. The Mother was on the highest level and had a commanding view of everything in the temple. Krillgan also noticed the two pillars the Captain mentioned, with rings at the top and at the bottom. Where a person's limbs could be secured. The Mother would not have to move a centimeter to watch a person being beaten. Krillgan would not be surprised if the dark splotches on the pillars were dried blood. No wonder they have to drug people to get them to join them.

The Mother welcomed her guests to the night's festivities and hoped that they would find some way to pleasure them. They were told that they would start the night's entertainment with the traditional raping of the bride. The village was promised that the female slave would be returned to them tomorrow, in time for her wedding. A pretty young lady was escorted out between two Nightsisters. She looked like she might be a year younger than Diennu. That the Nightsisters had not touched her until now, told Krillgan that they had been saving her for this day. He wondered how long ago she had actually asked to be married. It was obvious to Krillgan, being the son of a weaver, that the clothing she was wearing had no strength in the material. The two Nightsisters positioned her in front of a padded bench, and held her. The male slave that had been selected for this, was signalled by the Mother to begin. He quickly approached the young lady and started ripping handfuls of clothing off of her body. Krillgan thought that the male slave looked like he was enjoying himself too much. After he had torn every piece of clothing off of her, the two Nightsisters forced her to lie back on the bench. With one hand they pinned her down, with the other hand they grabbed the inside of her knees spreading her legs. The male slave slowly forced his horn into her secret place, as far as he could. Then he slowly pulled it all the way out. He turned his body so that the Mother could see he had blood on the horn of his manhood. He turned back and penetrated her place of secrets again. This time he went as hard and as fast as he could, not caring one bit about her. As a healer Krillgan knew that he was tearing her inside, and if it scarred, it would make childbirth that much more painful for her. He only stopped when he spent his seed inside of her. He rested on top of her for a moment before pulling his shrivelling horn out of her, and went and sat at the Mother's feet.

The two Nightsisters pulled the young lady to her feet and told her to go to the kitchen for refreshments for their guests. She came back with a tray of drinks, and headed for Krillgan as she was instructed. Krillgan could see a trickle of blood, and some of the male slave's seed, running down one leg. She held her tray for him to grab the first drink. He didn't. He reached for a drink further back. In the process holding his hand against hers as she held the tray. She could feel a tingling in her secret place, and looked at him in amazement. She had heard the Nightsisters say that he was supposed to be a powerful healer. But this was unexpected. When he took the glass he selected off of the tray. She asked him if he was healing her. Krillgan held the glass in front of his face, and told her to be careful what she says to him, because they can read lips. Krillgan saw that she shifted her tray when she served the other clan Sisters, so they would not reach for the drink that was intended for Krillgan. Then she shifted it again so that a Nightsister took it instead, so she would not have to take it back to the kitchen. Fortunately for the Nightsister, she only lightly sipped on the drink. The next couple to entertain them went and stood in front of the bench where the bride-to-be, was raped. The Nightsister wore all sorts of brightly coloured garments. At first Krillgan wondered if she had no sense of taste or style. Then he remembered that their Mother is coordinating this show. She must have gone into every Nightsisters closet, and removed the brightest article of clothing she could find. The result was what everyone in Krillgan's family would call an eyesore. She proceeded to sway her body, and removed a piece of clothing, throwing it amongst the people in the temple. Krillgan thought that this could be considered entertaining, if someone had been playing some musical instruments. The Nightsister than removed an article of clothing from the male slave. She went back and forth, removing articles of clothing, from both of them. Until they were both standing completely naked. Krillgan noticed that the young Nightsisters were the most enthralled by this. Gwenlath smiled at him, when she saw her look his way. So he knew that she was as much entertained by this as he was. Looking around, Krillgan noticed that he had a clear view of everyone, even though he was on the lowest level in the temple. He presumed that they placed him where they all had a chance to watch him. But this meant that he could also watch them. The Nightsisters' Mother noticed that he had looked at her, but he started looking somewhere else before they made eye contact. She was very disappointed that he was not watching the show. She considered this Nightsister to be her very best seductress. When he did look back at her they locked eyes, she could see that he had no fear of her. She saw his eyes were cold towards her. She thought that male healers were supposed to be full of compassion. There was no compassion in those eyes.

Krillgan forced her to look away. It was a good thing he did, because he thought he saw the Nightsister take the male slave's horn of manhood into her mouth, out of the corner of his eye. He turned and looked. That is exactly what he saw. Now why would she do that? He forced himself to look away, because of what Mother and elder Yma taught him about how the aphrodisiacs that the Nightsisters use, work. If he is looking at something that is arousing him. The aphrodisiacs tend to magnify that stimulation to the point that it takes control of your brain. Causing you to force yourself on the person who is visually stimulating you.

So if the Nightsisters' Mother had noticed that he had started looking at what this Nightsister was doing, she would have had more Nightsisters do it. Even right in front of him where it would be difficult for him to look away. There are other aspects to what the force enhanced aphrodisiacs do. For men, who have consumed large amounts, once they are fully aroused, their horn stays firm until the aphrodisiacs are purged from their system, no matter how often they release their seed. There is also the aspect that once they take control of the brain the person that is under its control has no conscience knowledge of what they are doing. They become a sex machine. Krillgan vowed that he would not let that happen, for Ludia's sake.

He found himself studying the Mother's face. He knew it was painted. But normally the Nightsisters paint it white, then paint black designs over that to hide how their faces have become distorted from using the dark side of the force. Her one lieutenant had painted her face that way. Scarface on the other hand has not bothered. The distortions are clearly visible, it is almost like she does not care anymore how her face looks. The Mother clearly cares because she mixed something with the white paint to give herself a pinkish face. But first she must have put something thick on her face that she could mold, to cover up her distortions. Then applied her special paint over top. Because from this distance it almost looks normal.

Krillgan suspected that if she ever smiled, her face would fall off. It was too bad that the other clan Sisters were not close enough for him to talk to. They would have had a good laugh if he had been able to tell them. The next time that the bride-to-be, came around, she was carrying a tray of snacks. She positioned her body so that only Krillgan could see her face. She pointed to one of the snacks, and told him that she is supposed to get him to take it. But not to worry she knows how to get rid of it. Krillgan dropped a couple of drops of kolto on her skin. To continue healing her without touching her. He took the snack next to the one she pointed out. He commented out loud, "Not much of a selection is there."

To let the Nightsisters know, that they are not very good hosts. She smiled both because of the tingling feeling she was getting from the ointment he just placed on her skin, and because of his brashness. He was a fighter. She wondered if he is sharing ointment with her, that he had smuggled in for himself, knowing that everything he will be eating and drinking will have Nightsister's potions in it. She heard the Nightsisters talking about all the things they want to make him do, once he was under their control. She knew about the raping of the groom. The man she will be marrying tomorrow had fully expected to be told to come here with her. They were both surprised, and thankful that he wasn't. She now believes that it is because of this purple healer, that he wasn't called. The Nightsisters had heard that he is engaged to be married. So he is the one that they want for the raping of the groom. Only they plan on doing much worse than she has ever heard. How can she help him? How can she let him know that he has to get away? It would be better for him if he perished in the high tide waters, than stay here and fight the Nightsisters' potions with his ointment.

After the Nightsister finished her show with the male slave. She went up to her Mother, to ask her how she did. She was expecting to hear praise. Instead her Mother told her that he was more interested in staring at her, than at watching their show. So she sent her to the kitchen to help the slaves serve everyone. The Nightsister knew that she was being punished for a poor performance. Since there was nothing else planned for a performance. The Nightsisters' Mother gave the signal that they were allowed to have sex with the male slaves. The Nightsister that the bride-to-be, gave Krillgan's special cup of potion to, had only finished half the cup. But it was enough to set her off. When she knew that she had permission. She knocked the tray of food, out of the hands of the closest male slave, and pulled him down on top of her, wrapping her legs around him. The only clothing that male slaves were allowed to wear at this party, were cloth vests. So they were all naked from the waist down. Some of the older female slaves were also allowed to wear vests, because the Nightsisters did not like looking at their sagging mountains. The young female slaves were all completely naked. None of the slaves were allowed to say anything if a Nightsister wanted to touch them. The Nightsisters did, just because they could. The Nightsisters also wanted to see if the slaves would be embarrassed by where they touched them and how they touched them. If the female slaves reacted, than the Nightsisters would be merciless in touching them. It was not unusual for a new female slave to be on the ground crying, while the Nightsisters fondled her all over. If she tried to use her hands to protect herself, she would be immediately secured to the posts and whipped until she bled. Then the Nightsisters would fondle her some more, while her hands and feet are secure.

Fortunately, all the slaves were veterans, and did not react to the touching. Krillgan would have tried to defend a slave, if he saw them hurting them. Even though he was instructed not to interfere with what they do to their own slaves.

Krillgan tried hard to pace himself with the food and drinks they gave him. He spent most of the time looking at the Mother so that he would not have to look at the orgy taking place around him. One of her lieutenants thought that he might be more interested in men than women, even though they knew he was engaged to be married to the daughter of the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan. She sent one of the male slaves to dance before him. Krillgan took it as a welcome reprieve. The male slave blocked his view of everyone. Unfortunately the reprieve was short. The Mother realised that he could not see them. She slapped her lieutenant in the face for doing what she did, and ordered the male slave away. She told the lieutenant that it would have been better if she had danced before him, and showed him what she has to offer him. The lieutenant told her Mother that her body was much nicer, and would be more appealing to him. This lieutenant got where she was by knowing what to say, and when to say it.

The Mother thought, "He is staring at me all the time, maybe I can entice him with my body. She asked the male slave that had raped the bride, and was still sitting at her feet. To push up her skirt. The slave got excited, maybe Mother wants him to pleasure her. He pushes up her skirt revealing that she was wearing nothing underneath. Krillgan was probably the only one who could see this. She then instructs the male slave to stand behind her and to reach down through the neck opening of her blouse and fondle her mountains. The slave considered this a great honour. He told the Mother as he was fondling her, that he would like to use his lips, his tongue, and his teeth on her. She told him that if he does a good job, she would let him. She tilts her head back and moans, opening and closing her legs, pretending she was in a moment of great pleasure. At the same time watching Krillgan out of the corner of her eye, to see if there would be any reaction. Nothing! He continued to stare at her with his cold eyes.

She tells the slave to stop, and to remove his hands. She pushes her skirt down by herself. She tells the male slave to go get the purple man a new drink, obviously he has not drunk enough.

Now Krillgan had been daydreaming while the Nightsister's Mother had put on her show for him. He was remembering the tournament his mother fought in, on Uvena Prime, and how much fun he had with his friend.

When he saw the mother move her hands, straightening her skirt, and he noticed that the male slave was no longer at her feet. He wondered what he had missed. When he saw the male slave return. He saw that he was carrying one of his special drinks. Krillgan gave a small pillow that was lying along the path he was taking, a slight push. The pillowed tangled in the male slave's feet causing him to trip. The drink ended up all over Scarface. Krillgan thought that this could not have been any better if he had planned it. Scarface gets up and starts wailing on the slave, using the force with her punches to make sure she was inflicting pain. The slave had curled up into a ball with his arms over his head to protect himself. He knew that it would be no use to complain, he just whimpered. He was saved, only because of Mother's intervention.

Her lieutenant protests, showing her what the slave has done, telling Mother that this was not the first time. Claiming he was incompetent as a server. The Mother sends the slave back to the kitchen, telling him to handle only foods, and not touch the drinks. She tells her lieutenant to go wash up and change.

The Mother had noticed Krillgan watching, this with a smirk on his face. She wondered if he had anything to do with it. If he did, she did not sense it. Which would make him a very powerful force user. If she did try to enslave him as she wanted to. She would have to be very careful who she let near him. Even if she kept him drugged. He could still force most of her Nightsisters to obey him and do his bidding. She might not be able to use him in her breeding program.

Why did those stupid clan Sisters ever teach him how to fight?

The bride-to-be did what she could to help Krillgan. She took a big gulp out of a regular spiked drink, and topped it up with water. She wasn't worried about their being a smell on her breath. Because slaves were allowed to drink. In fact they were encouraged to take a glass that was almost empty, and drain it. Leaving a full glass in its place. They were not allowed to take a regular drink and water it down. Fortunately no one saw her. She went to Krillgan, letting him know which drink he should take from her. As soon as he tasted it, he knew why. She then took the drink that they had prepared for him, and went around topping up the Nightsisters' drinks with it. Again no one took notice.

Krillgan was quite worried that if she continued doing this, she would be caught. He knew that if she was, he would be forced to defend her. He did not anticipate that the clan Sisters would be in any shape to help him.

Fortunately most of the Nightsisters were in worse shape than the clan sisters. Krillgan was confident that he could fight his way off the mountain. He could not stay and fight, because the Nightsisters' Mother had a Dathomirite sword somewhere. If he had to fight for her, she would not be getting married tomorrow. He was also concerned that the raped bride might be ingesting too many aphrodisiacs herself. So when he noticed that other slaves were showing that they were being affected by what they drank. He signalled her to put down her tray. He then started lowering her heart rate. She did not know what was happening. Suddenly she had no energy. There was a pile of pillows near the clan Sisters. She made herself comfortable. In a short time she was asleep. When he knew she was asleep, he raised her heart rate back to normal.

None of the Nightsisters detected that he had used the force again. The clan Sisters were in awe, because they watched him do it.

Later that evening, Gwenlath noticed someone carrying a tray of drinks, and one of Krillgan's drinks was on it. She signalled the person to come to her, and grabbed Krillgan's drink off of the tray, and started drinking it. She did not know that it was the Nightsister who was forced to serve them. She went and told her Mother what the clan Sister had done. They started watching her because they were starting to question their recipe, since it did not seem to affect the healer. Gwenlath thought that she should be able to handle at least two drinks, because she believed that Krillgan had had more. Krillgan knew this was a disaster about to happen, and he could not stop it. With all the spiked food and drinks she had already consumed that evening, this could break her will.

Krillgan knew that all the clan Sisters were trying to be strong because of him, and had not given into their desires. She had not finished the drink when a male slave walked by her. She grabbed him and kissed him. Then she tore off her clothes, oblivious of who was watching her. Making him have sex with her. Suddenly right in the middle of having sex, she fell unconscious. The Nightsister and her Mother watched the whole thing. They were pleased that the drink worked as they designed it. They talked about making this foolish clan Sister, a Nightsister. Now that they had control over her. They decided that the male healer was still their top priority. After they controlled him, they would start working on her.

When Gwenlath succumbed, it was not long before the other clan Sisters gave in to their desires. Krillgan knew that it was time for him to leave. He knew that they would not just let him walk out of here. So he had to think of another way out. He got up out of his chair like he was having trouble because he was drunk. The Nightsister who was serving, came up to him, asking what he was doing. He slurred his speech telling her that he had to go relieve himself, because he was full up to his eyeballs. The Nightsister told her Mother that he was drunk and needed to relieve himself. The Mother told her to take him to the slaves' latrine. They did not have a men's and women's latrine on the mountain. They had the Nightsisters' latrine, and the slaves' latrine. As the Nightsister led the healer away, the Mother wondered if they may have been looking at this all wrong. The healer is not human, even if he looks similar to one. Maybe the aphrodisiacs have no effect on him. His weakness might be alcohol. Then she wondered if they really could breed him. What if his seed was not compatible with a human female's egg? Then they wasted a lot of time and energy trying to seduce and enslave him.

She was thinking too hard, she needed a distraction. A nice young male slave was nearby. She stood up and called him over to herself. When he was standing directly in front of her, on the next level down, she lifted her blouse and put it over his head. She looked down into her blouse, and told him to enjoy.

The slaves' latrine was dark, and reeked. It was only the Nightsisters' latrine that was lit and cleaned regularly. The Nightsister stood in the doorway. The longer she stood there the more her eyes were able to adjust to the darkness. Krillgan was a long time in relieving himself. He really was full to bursting. When he finished, he teased the Nightsister.

"Don't you want to look before I put it away? It might not be worth all the trouble you Nightsisters are going to, to try and get your hands on it."

She was curious to see it. She also did not know that Krillgan had already put his horn away. When she was close enough Krillgan grabbed her. He wanted to put a choke hold on her and subdue her. But because of all the drugs pumping through his system, he misjudged his strength, and snapped her neck. He just let her naked body drop to the floor of the latrine. Later he realised that it was better this way. If he had subdued her, they would have tortured her to death for letting him escape.

Krillgan knew that the only Nightsisters not at the party were guarding the ramp. He could not see the ramp when he stepped out of the latrine. So he knew the guards could not see him. There was only one way down for him. He took a couple of deep breathes, then started running for the edge of the mountain, as fast as he could. He knew that he needed to use the ledge as a springboard, to jump as far from the mountain's edge as possible. The clan Sisters had told him, that ever since the big fire, that the Nightsisters had used to make Glass Mountain, they noticed the ground around the mountain had been sterilised by the heat of the fire. So nothing grew around the entire mountain. Now over the years the swamp would try to claim the land back. So every few years the Nightsisters would light another ring of fire around the mountain, to push the swamp back.

Krillgan did not know how big the dead zone around the mountain was, because he was blindfolded when they brought him to the mountain. He just knew that he did not want to land in it. So when he hit the ledge around the mountain, with both his feet. He used all his strength, and all the force energy he could muster, to push himself away from the mountain.

With the drugs in his body and the air rushing around him. He wanted to scream, "I'm Free!" Normally because of his Chagrian heritage, he would have had no trouble seeing at night. But tonight when he looked down (he was hoping he was looking down) all he could see was blackness. He kept pushing down with the force to try and slow his descent, but could not feel anything solid pushing back. At one point he started panicking, thinking that he still might be back in the latrine, hallucinating all this. That thought quickly disappeared when the first branch hit him. It was too solid, and hurt too much to be a hallucination. He quickly reached out with his left arm and the force to embrace the tree. To help slow him down. At the same time reaching down with his right hand to force push down, as hard as he could. Still he could feel nothing solid.

The branches were cutting and tearing at the flesh on his arm, but he did not care. He found that he had no sense of distance or time. Nothing really seemed real.

He finally stopped falling, holding onto a branch with both hands and feet. His natural eyesight was useless because of the drugs. He had no idea how much farther he needed to fall before reaching the ground. He just hung there and let his body heal all the cuts, tears, and abrasions. When he felt better, he knew that the only thing he could do was let go and drop, hoping that he did not have far to go. He let go and almost immediately landed on his buttocks, on some very soft, but very wet moss. Krillgan started to laugh, no wonder he could not feel the ground. There most be a very thick layer of moss in this part of the swamp. Whenever he pushed down with the force, the spongy moss must have absorbed the push. It still slowed him down, but he had no feedback, about hitting something solid. He had no idea where he was, or where he needed to go. Now he felt like he was losing control of his body. He needed to get to somewhere safe, and he needed help.

Krillgan reached out with the force to see if he could sense any life around him. He ignored all the insects and all the little creatures he could feel scurrying about in their daily life and death struggle to survive. He felt a large enough life force not too far away. He hoped it would help him. He tried standing up, but could not, because of the soft moss. He found that he had to crawl on his arms and knees, if he wanted to get anywhere. He actually could not use just his hands, because he would push them through the moss. He had to use his forearms with his hands spread, to stay on top of the moss, as well as keeping his legs spread so he was crawling on his belly, rather than having his knees underneath him. It was very slow going.

When he was close enough to the creature, that he could identify it with the force, he stopped and reached out to it. It was a Dathomir Boar. A very big one. Krillgan tried talking to it as a Rancor. Though boars are intelligent creatures, they were no-where near as intelligent as a Rancor. So Krillgan had a hard time getting through to it. The good news was that it did not run away. He was able to get it to understand that he wanted help getting out of the swamp before the next major tide. The boar could not come out onto the moss, so Krillgan had to crawl to it. He kept connected to the boar, and sensed that it was surprised to see that it was a human that had reached out to it. Humans were a predator, he was their prey, but this one seemed different. The boar found it amusing to watch the human crawl on the moss. It asked Krillgan how it got out there. Krillgan told him that he fell out of a tree, because he did not know where he was going. He told the boar, that the Nightsisters had poisoned him. Now he had trouble telling where he was going. The boar recognised the image of the Nightsisters with their painted faces. He knew they were the enemy of all his kind. The boar for some reason seemed willing to help him. The boar was large enough that it let Krillgan crawl up onto its back and rest. While the boar went to find the way out of the swamp.

Suddenly the boar stopped. Krillgan could smell it too. There was a Rancor up ahead. Krillgan got off of the boar, onto unsteady feet. He told the boar to run away, he would protect him. The boar had no doubt that as long as he kept the human between himself and the Rancor, he was safe. He thanked the human for willing to sacrifice himself for him. He left knowing that this the way of the swamp, some get eaten, while others get away.

Krillgan reached out to the Rancor. He told him that he has become separated from his herd, and was not feeling well. He needed to get back to them, so that they could help him. The Rancor asked him, what was his herd called? Krillgan told him the Singing Mountain Clan. The Rancor knew this herd. They controlled the lowlands where he had to go when there was a major tide covering the swamp. They were well fed and tolerated the Rancor that came up to the lowlands for sanctuary. Sometimes they were even gracious enough to give them permission to hunt while they were waiting for the waters to go down. They were large Rancor, and every swamp Rancor feared them, and obeyed. Secretly every swamp Rancor dreamed of the chance to become part of that herd. But they were small and would be eaten if they tried to approach the herd mother.

The Rancor asked Krillgan how his herd would treat him, if he helped him. Krillgan told him that he would speak with the herd Mother on his behalf. He was sure that the herd Mother would accept him, for helping one of her herd. The Rancor told Krillgan that he could approach, he would not hurt him. When Krillgan staggered up to him, he could smell that he was not a female. He asked Krillgan why he deceived him. It was only females that rode Rancor. Krillgan asked him, how he could talk with him, if it was only females that rode Rancor? The Rancor had to sit down to think about that one. He asked Krillgan, if there were other males like him? Krillgan told him he was the only one. The Rancor was satisfied. If he was the only male, then none of the swamp Rancor would know about him, and he would be special to his herd. The Rancor let Krillgan climb up onto his back. In no time the Rancor was at the edge of the swamp, and started to climb the cliff to the lowlands. He avoided the trail because he had earlier smelt the presence of the females at the top, and there were mixed herd smells. Not a place to be for a small Rancor with no herd attachments. When he reached the lowlands the Rancor stretched his legs and started running at a comfortable pace. He could hardly wait to be accepted as part of a herd. He would never have to go hungry again. Right now he was very hungry, and it did not help that this man smelt like Dathomir boar, not a Rancor herd. He easily ducked under the low hanging branches of the lowland trees. As he approached the cliffs of the midlands he smelt a small group of the herd he was looking for, and started running towards them. He spoke to the man on his back to tell him that he had found his herd. But there was no response. Then he realised that the man was no longer on his back. He must have knocked him off in the trees. The Rancor sat down and started to cry, because now he was going to be eaten.

The Singing Mountain Clan's patrol spotted the Rancor approaching them, then stop and sit down and start crying. What unusual behaviour for a Rancor. The Sister in charge of the patrol stopped everyone. She jumped down off her Rancor and approached the crying Rancor on foot. She asked the Rancor why he was crying. The Rancor told her that he was crying because now he was going to be eaten. The Sister asked him, why he thought that? He told her that he has come deep into her herds' territory without permission. So now he must be punished, and the only punishment he knows is that he will be eaten. The Sister asked him why he had come this far into their territory, and it looked like he was looking for them. The Rancor told her about the male he encountered in the swamp, who smelled of boar, and not of a herd. But he said he was part of a herd and needed their help. The Rancor told her, that the man said he was part of her herd. The Singing Mountain Clan herd. But he wasn't paying attention and must have knocked the man off in the trees. So now there was no one to talk to the herd Mother for him. So now instead of being fed, he was going to be eaten. So he started crying again. The Sister had to calm him down, and assure him that he was not going to be eaten for trying to help one of their herd. She told him that she was going to ask her Rancor to come and sniff him. If the man he was trying to help was on his back. Her Rancor would recognise his smell.

She went back to her patrol. She told them that the swamp Rancor claims that he was helping Krillgan. But must have knocked him of his back when going through the trees. She climbed back up on her Rancor's back and went into their supplies. She pulled out the last porridge cake, and jumped down. Her Rancor looked at her. She told her Rancor that the swamp Rancor claimed that Krillgan smelt like Dathomir Boar, and that he was hungry. He must be very hungry if he was smelling Dathomir Boar for a long time, and did not try and eat Krillgan. Her Rancor understood. Her Rancor also told her that one porridge cake would not do much in her big stomach, so maybe it was better for the swamp Rancor to have it.

When they approached, the swamp Rancor was surprised that the Sister offered him something to eat. So he munched on the cake while the female Rancor sniffed him. The Rancor confirmed that Krillgan had been on the swamp Rancor's back, and that there was the strong smell of boar. The Sister thought about what she should do next. She asked the swamp Rancor, if he would be willing if one of her people rode him back to her herd Mother? The person would not be able to communicate with him, and if he knocks her off, there would be no one there to stop him from being eaten. The swamp Rancor understood. He promised that he would be more careful. The Sister looked at her favourite scout, and asked her if she was willing to go for the ride of her life. They need to know that Krillgan has escaped the Glass Mountain. The scout was thrilled at the idea. So the Sister handed her one of her flags to wear, so that the swamp Rancor would not be attacked when approaching the village. Then the Sister turned to her other scout, and handed him one of her other flags. He was to make his way to the top of the trail to the swamp, which was near the Nightsisters' village. He was to tell the Sisters there, that Krillgan has escaped the mountain. There was no need for them to wait there any longer. She was going to retrace where the swamp Rancor has been, in case Krillgan is just lying on the ground, unconscious.

When the healer and her Nightsister, did not return. The Nightsisters' Mother was starting to get angry, maybe her best seductress had manage to seduce the healer in the latrine. Not the best place to have sex, but she was very opportunistic. She also knew that her Mother wanted to be the first to have her way with him.

She sent Scarface to go see what was taking them so long. Her lieutenant returned very quickly. She told her Mother that the Nightsister was dead, and that the healer was nowhere to be found. "The guards are at their posts, so he did not go down the ramp." At first the Mother was happy to hear that her Nightsister did not defy her. Then she realised that the male healer was gone. She ordered everyone to look for him. She even told them to get one of the guards to help. She tried to rouse her Nightsisters that had passed out in the temple, but they were too far gone, because of the drugs and alcohol in their system, to be of any use. With the help of the kitchen staff, one of the guards, and the serving slaves that where still on their feet. The lieutenants conducted a thorough search of the mountain. They told their Mother that the healer was no longer on the mountain. She ordered every Nightsister to start searching the swamp. There was no longer a need to keep a guard posted. If the healer was foolish enough to jump off of the mountain, she wanted his body found. She even went down to the swamp to help them.

Krillgan had fallen asleep, while riding on the back of the swamp Rancor. He was feeling nauseous and not fully in control of his body. It did not help when that branch suddenly struck him in the gut, winding him, leaving him just hanging there trying to catch his breath. Wondering how he got there. He could not remember the boar, or the Rancor. They just seemed like part of a dream to him. But he did remember that he loved running through the branches of the trees, from one tree to another. He let his instincts take over. He knew that he needed to get to his safe place, someone would be waiting there to help him.

Every Sister had a safe place, a place where they were conditioned to go when they were under duress. Most were conditioned to head for the temple, or the training ground. The younger Sisters of the Djo family were conditioned to head for the Clan Mother's cottage. That is where Ludia and Diennu would head when under duress. Krillgan was the only Sister of the clan that was conditioned to head for Lovers' Leap. It was where the stream that originated at the temple in the main village, wound its way past every village in the highlands, before tumbling over the escarpment onto the midlands. There it made its way south, southeast, through the heart of the midland forest, to where it emerged and went over the edge of the midland escarpment to the lowlands beneath. It continued its short southeast trek through the lowlands, until it went over the cliff edge into the ocean below. The waterfall from the midlands to the lowlands was called lovers leap. Because they found the dead bodies of two lovers that were cheating on their spouses at the bottom. It was a beautiful place in the midlands. It was also a place where many Sisters through the ages, brought their lovers and surrendered their virginity to them. This place was chosen by the Clan Mother for Krillgan, because it was the closest safe place in the midlands, to the southern coastal swamp, and the Glass Mountain. From the beginning when Krillgan came to the Singing Mountain Clan, it was assumed, that if Krillgan was in duress, it would be because of the Nightsisters. Because of his healing ability, there was nothing else that could cause him duress. So when Krillgan emerged from the lowland forest, at the base of the midland escarpment, he did not hesitate to climb it to the top. Then he followed the edge of the escarpment east until he reached Lovers' Leap.

By the time he reached his safe place, Krillgan was no longer Krillgan. The drugs had taken over his mind and now controlled his body. The next female he met, young or old, it did not matter what she looked like. He was primed to rape her.

The Clan Mother was waiting for Krillgan at his safe place. The elders had argued with her about this. She was the Clan Mother she should not risk herself like this. Amblin-Elu refused to give in. They knew that she believed that she was doing this to protect Ludia. She made it abundantly clear that as her mother she had to do it.

The elders had convinced Butashe to go instead, for the sake of the clan. Amblin-Elu was horrified that they would even suggest that. Butashe is her baby sister, she could not let her face that monster. She had to protect her, just as much as her daughter. When the elders realised that their Mother was not backing down, they knew they had to stop fighting her, and figure out how to help her. Amblin-Elu asked them not to follow her. She did not want them see her humiliate herself for Krillgan's sake. But two of them did. So she undressed where she was sure they would find her clothes. There was also a pretty dress that Mother Andriel made for her that she herself had shredded. Along with torn undergarments. There was a vial of blood that Butashe donated, as the only way that Amblin-Elu would let her help. Ludia and Diennu also donated blood. It was in the bottle with the blood Mother Andriel donated. She knew that the elders would know what to do with all of it. All she had on, was her cloak, to keep her warm until Krillgan showed up.

When the Krillgan monster entered the clearing, all he knew was that there was a female standing there. When she dropped her cloak revealing her naked body. All he could see was the naked torso. He had no idea who it was. He just saw an apparition floating before him of what he wanted. He ripped off his own clothes as easily as the male slave had torn the clothes off of the bride. His extra strength was not from the force, but from the drugs and the high levels of adrenaline and testosterone they had induced in his system. When he was free of all hindrances, he tackled the torso he saw before him before it could get away. He forced himself on it, and started grunting worse than a Rancor. Amblin-Elu suspected that she would have major bruising over most of her body, from the way she was tackled. But then she felt tingling all over her body. The healing oil in Krillgan, was now healing her. She also sensed that something else had come with it. Some of the aphrodisiacs in his blood had dissolved into his healing oil. So every time he hurt her, than healed her. More aphrodisiacs would enter her system. It would be really bad for both of them, if she also lost control of herself. She dissociated her mind from her body, something that she learnt to do with her husband.

Now Krillgan had full control of her body, and could do whatever he wanted to with it, and she would not feel it. She went to her happy place, the forest and fields around the village where she and her sister grew up. She relived those happy times when they played together, and discovered the force together. It wasn't until they were much older that she found out that Butashe was not supposed to be a force user. Amblin-Elu was so glad she was. She could not imagine what life would have been like without her. She has always needed her sister to be there for her, and she always was.

Suddenly Amblin-Elu felt herself falling. She quickly re-associated herself with her body. They had both slipped over the edge of the escarpment. She tried lifting their bodies with the force, but she was not strong enough. She could only hope to give them a soft landing when they reached the base of the waterfall at Lovers' Leap. Suddenly a very powerful force grabbed them, and picked them both up. It lifted them both back over the edge of the escarpment. It was the two elders, Hm-Shassa and Yma. They asked her, where they wanted her to put them down? Amblin-Elu told them to drop them in the stream, Krillgan needs to start cooling off. They told her, that she needs to pay more attention. It would have been disastrous for the clan, if she would have been found at the bottom of Lovers' Leap by her own Sisters, especially with the way Krillgan is right now. Krillgan had been oblivious of everything that was happening around him. He just kept grunting away. Amblin-Elu on the other hand, was very conscience that she was totally naked, with her soon to be son-in-law, between her legs, just grunting away. With two of her elders carrying on a conversation with her, while they held them suspended in the air, with nothing to hide them.

Amblin-Elu asked them if they found the clothes and the blood. They said they did. "So you know what to do." They said they did. They will tell her later that they also found something else.

When they grabbed them, the force revealed that Krillgan had two knives hidden on his person. When they let go of them over the stream. They held onto the knives. Amblin-Elu was prepared for the shock of hitting the cold water, and held her breath. Krillgan was not, and got a mouthful of cold water.

Krillgan momentarily stopped what he was doing. But he stubbornly held onto his prize.

When they resurfaced, Krillgan coughed to clear his airways, then went back to his grunting. Amblin-Elu used the force to carry them upstream, always checking both sides, to see if there was an appropriate place to beach, and get out of the water.

It was good that they were in the water. Krillgan's body was producing and consuming hormones at an extremely high level. His body temperature had started to rise. If it had not been held in check by the cold stream water, he could easily have overheated. Which would have caused severe brain damage.

It was Amblin-Elu that was now in danger of hypothermia. So she clung to Krillgan as her only heat source, and controlled both their body temperatures. Whenever he started getting too hot. She would dunk him. Either by both submerging, or by rolling over. Either way, Krillgan ended up with a mouthful of water, and a brief coughing fit when he was allowed back up for air. Ironically Krillgan needed those mouthfuls of water to help him stay hydrated. The running water also helped to carry away his seed. He never experienced a true climax because of the aphrodisiacs. He just did not tire. Every time he released his seed, it only drove him to want to experience it over and over. They went upstream for quite a few hours. It was only when the light of predawn appeared that Amblin-Elu sensed that Krillgan's heat output was starting to diminish. She found a nice thick bed of grass on the west side of the stream. This was perfect, because it received the morning light. She beached their bodies, but stayed near the stream in case she had to cool Krillgan down. She was sure the elders were someplace nearby, ready to help her, once Krillgan was spent, and all the aphrodisiacs had been consumed.

One of the guards found the marks left by the swamp Rancor, where it climbed the cliff face. She found that odd because it was still hours away before the next major tide. Rancor are usually one of the last creatures to leave the swamp, because they like to intercept, and feed on the other creatures that are trying to escape. So she backtracked and found the footprints of a human approaching the Rancor. She went and found her Mother the two lieutenants and the other guard, and brought them to that spot. The Mother ordered the two guards to climb to the top and follow the Rancor's tracks. Apparently the healer was still alive. She and her lieutenants decided to backtrack, to see if they could determine how he survived the jump off of the mountain. They followed the footprints back to where they were next to those of a huge Dathomir Boar. They realised that it must be one of the biggest boars in the swamp. They followed the boar's tracks back to the edge of a bed of moss, where it had been feeding. It was hard to tell if this was where the healer made contact with the boar. They could see drag marks over the moss. They knew the boar could not have made them. So the Mother ordered Scarface to follow them to see what she could find. When Scarface stepped out onto the moss, she sank up to her waist. The Mother told her that she will have to do what the healer did, and drag herself across the surface. Scarface complained that the moss was all wet, and she would be soaked. Her Mother reminded her that it was better than her being dead. So she first had to climb out of the moss. Then she had to figure out how to stay on top, and travel across it. It was painfully slow crawling across the surface of the moss. Her Mother asked her, if she could go faster? She just said, "No!"

It was quite a while before her lieutenant yelled back that it looked like the healer had fallen down out of a tree. She could see what looked like broken branches above her. Her Mother asked her if she could climb the tree and have a closer look. It was predawn when her lieutenant called back and said that she found some leaves and branches with blood on them. Her Mother asked if she could bring them to her. She heard her lieutenant swear, she forgot to bring a knife. The only way she could cut the green branch off, is if she chewed it off.

The guards followed the Rancor's tracks until they were lost by a patrol's tracks covering it up. The only chance they had was to backtrack along the patrol's tracks, to see if the Rancor's tracts left them. As they backtracked, they found the spot where the patrol intercepted the Rancor. They could see where the Rancor was sitting on the ground. The one guard spoke to the other.

"This does not make sense, if the healer was on the Rancor. Won't they have taken him back to their village?" The other guard agreed. She suggested that they continue to follow the Rancor for now. They followed the Rancor's trail to the base of the escarpment. They climbed up the escarpment, and one guard started to follow the Rancor's trail.

The other guard called her back and pointed out that someone was following the edge of the escarpment on foot. She asked the guard to put her foot beside the footprint. She told the guard that she heard that she has one of the largest feet of all the Nightsisters, yet the footprint is larger than hers, so it must have been made by a man. They backtracked to where the footprints started. Definitely he climbed up here. The other guard speculated that the reason the patrol did not escort the Rancor, was because the healer was not on its back. The patrol must have followed the Rancor's trail back to where they must have believed the healer left the Rancor. So the two guards started following the man's footprints wondering where they would lead them.

They themselves did not notice, that they were also being followed. A Sister, who was also a Ranger had spotted them when they first appeared on the lowlands. She followed them because she saw that they were tracking something, or someone. She had to be careful because it was already the predawn sky.

Amblin-Elu noticed that Krillgan was not as hot as he was before, and was starting to show signs of fatigue. She rolled them away from the stream into the soft grass. She continued to let him have his way with her, until he collapsed on top of her, fast asleep. She rolled over putting him on his back, and got up. There were a few broadleaf plants at the edge of the small clearing. She picked some leaves and covered him. That would have to do for now.

The elders appeared with her clothes and cloak. They also showed her the two stone knives that he had hidden on his body. She went back to the stream to wash herself as best she could. She told the elders that Ludia had warned her about them, but she could not find them when he first attacked her. The elders asked her, if she thought they were a danger to her? She told the elders that if he had still had them on him, went he went through one of his violent spells, he would have cut both of them, hoping that it would enhanced his pleasure. Hm-Shassa wondered where their Mother had gotten so much knowledge. There is little written in the book of Knowledge and Wisdom on this subject. She wanted to talk with Yma about what she had suspected for a long time. It would account for her odd behaviour over this matter. Maybe their Mother was right.

They helped Mother dress, she was shivering, so there was no question that she needed her cloak. They all helped each other through the forest and up the escarpment to the highlands. They raced across the highlands to Mother's cottage. Ludia and Diennu were waiting there for them. They asked Mother, if Krillgan was going to be all right? She told them that he was fine and resting. She gave them a thick stiff carpet. She told them where they would find Krillgan. She told them to wrap him in it, and not let him out, because he was too weak. She gave Ludia a little piece of porridge cake. She told her that if he wakes up, and complains about being hungry. That is all she could feed him. She can give him handfuls of cold water from the stream, as much as he wants, just don't let him out.

When the two young ladies left to go find their friend, Mother went over to her mixing bench to prepare herself a potion. It is the same potion that they give to women who are raped, to help them from becoming pregnant.

On the Glass Mountain it was the bride-to-be who woke up first. She quickly woke up the clan Sisters cautioning them to be quite. The Nightsisters were still asleep. She could not seem to wakeup Gwenlath, and asked one of the Sisters to wake her. When Gwenlath would not wake up by normal means, she took drastic measures. She covered her mouth, and pinched her nose shut until she opened her eyes. She let go of her nose but kept her mouth covered. Gwenlath took two deep breathes through her nose, before the Sister asked her if she was awake enough to function. She nodded her head yes, so the Sister removed her hand from her mouth, and told her to dress quickly. When Gwenlath put her clothes on, she remembered having ripped them off. Now she could not cover herself up. She looked around to see if she could find something to wear. All she could find was bright pieces of clothing that looked like it might fit her. They all knew where they came from. She put them on, then she put her own ripped clothes on top. The other Sisters told her that it did not look bad, when she wore it like that.

The bride-to-be led them to the kitchen, where they were told that the only thing safe for them to have was the water. They all drank a couple of glasses because they were all dehydrated, and they all had bad headaches. The bride-to-be found her clothes in the storage room where she left them. She told them that they have to hurry, because a major tide should be coming back soon, and they would be trapped here for most of the day, and she had no plans on miss her wedding. The Sisters all said, that they had to use the latrine before leaving, after drinking all that water.

As they excited the building they asked the bride-to-be if there was any sign of Krillgan. She told them that his chair was cold, so he hadn't sat in it for a long time. When they entered the slaves' latrine they found the dead body of the Nightsister. One of the Sisters touched her, and told them the body is very cold. She has been dead for a long time. They all did their business as quickly as possible. When they made their way to the top of the ramp, they found no one there. Gwenlath told them that Krillgan must have escaped, and every Nightsister that has not passed out, must be out looking for him. They quickly made their way down the ramp. The temptation was to run. But if you did that, with the way their bodies still felt, because of the potions, there would come a point where your legs could not keep up with your body. Then you would smash into a wall at high speed, going head first. They still managed to get down faster than they went up, and they had all run up, because the tide was chasing them. It was not hard for the bride-to-be to find the trail, and all the Sisters followed her. When they made it to the lowlands they were surprised that none of their Sisters were there. One of the Sisters reminded them that they were all there because of Krillgan. If they received word that he was no longer on the mountain, than there was no need to hang around. When they looked back over the swamp, they could see that the tide was already starting to cover the swamp. They made it out just in time. Then she took them with her to her village, where the people welcomed them. They insisted on serving them breakfast before they continued on their way.

Some of the women came up to Gwenlath, and mentioned that it looked like she needed their help. An embarrassed Gwenlath was led into a room where she removed her clothes, and handed them to the ladies holding needle and thread. They gave her a robe to wear while she had breakfast with her new friends. None of them commented on the colourful clothes she was using as undergarments.

The Nightsister's Mother told Scarface to hurry with her chewing, because the tide should be returning soon. Scarface called back that she had already chewed through the branch, it was traveling on the moss that was slowing her down. She handed the branch to her Mother before making it all the way off the moss. The Mother asked her if she was sure it was the healer's blood. It looks darker than normal blood. Scarface told her that she was not sure, but when she looked up from this broken branch, she could see a trail of broken branches going up the tree. So if it wasn't the healer's, it was another creature that fell out of the sky.

Their Mother told them, "We may not have the healer, but we still have that other Sister that drank his potion. Let's go back up, and have some fun."

They made it to the base of the Glass Mountain, just as the tide waters reached it. Again they had to race up the ramp to keep ahead of the tide. When they went into their temple they could see that some of the Nightsisters were starting to stir. Their Mother noticed right away that some people were missing. The bride-to-be and all of the clan Sisters were gone. Including the drugged one. The Nightsisters' Mother screamed. It was a terrible sound to begin with. Much worse when your head is pounding.

Ludia and Diennu found Krillgan lying right where Mother had told them. Naked and covered in leaves. They did not bother removing the leaves when they wrapped him up. When they lifted him to their shoulders, they heard a feeble, "Where am I." They placed the carpet on the ground and looked in the one end. They told him that he was in the middle of the midlands, and that they were taking him to Mother's cottage. He asked them if they would let him out. They told him no. Mother had given them specific instructions that he had to stay wrapped up, until they reached the cottage. He then asked if he had hurt anyone last night. He had had some really bad dreams, and was afraid that he had hurt someone. Ludia and Diennu told him that they had not heard of anyone being hurt. They asked him what he remembered from last night. He told them that the last thing he remembered was jumping off of the Glass Mountain, thinking he was a bird.

Both women laughed. "If you were a bird, than your feathers have turned into leaves."

Krillgan was suddenly embarrassed. He could feel the leaves against his body, but nothing else. He told them he was thirsty. So they both went to the stream, grabbed handfuls of water and brought it back for him to drink. They probably spilt as much water in the carpet as he managed to drink. They had to make a few trips before he was satisfied. Ludia then gave him the small piece of porridge cake for him to chew on, that Mother had given her. When he finished it he asked her for more. Ludia told him that Mother had said that that was all he could have. Krillgan thanked them and did not ask for anything more. The two young ladies, again picked up the carpet with him inside it. Krillgan did not remember that trip, because he had fallen back asleep.

The Ranger following the two Nightsisters did not like what she heard them saying about Krillgan. They were at the top of Lovers' Leap. The two Nightsisters were saying that it looked like Krillian had attacked some lady. They could see signs of struggle, and claimed that they found fresh splatters of blood. When they looked down over the edge they thought they saw something snagged partway down the escarpment. When they climbed down they found a dress. It was torn and had blood on it. When they climbed down to the foot of the falls they found torn pieces of a woman's undergarments. They looked closely at the dress. One of the Nightsisters commented on how pretty it once was. She was going to take it back with her, to see if the slaves can wash the blood out, and mend the dress. Going downstream from the falls, they found a shirt. The Ranger recognised it as having belonged to Krillgan, the Nightsisters called him healer. It was the shirt he wore to their party. It was torn and had what looked like blood on it. It was much darker than what was found on the dress. The Nightsisters were speculating whether the healer was injured from the fall or from the struggle with the lady. They continued downstream and found Krillgan's pants snagged on some rocks just before the waterfall to the ocean. When they looked over the edge they saw a giant fish swimming around where the waterfall hit the ocean. The Nightsisters were pretty sure that they knew where the healer and the lady ended up. After the Nightsisters left, the Ranger broke down and started crying. Krillgan is dead.

When Ludia and Diennu reached Mother's cottage with their bundle. Krillgan noticed the ingredients on Mother's mixing table, through the opening in the end of the carpet. The only way he could see anything. He felt really bad, to him it was obvious that he had raped someone last night. The dreams were too real to be imagined, and they had mixed a potion for someone.

Ludia and Diennu unceremoniously unrolled the carpet with Krillgan in it on Mother's bed, and left the carpet on top of him. They told him that mother and father had prepared some new clothes for him. They were draped on a chair. When he was feeling stronger, he should get dressed. He just lay there for quite a while. He had never felt so weak in his life. He kept wondering how many people he hurt last night. He remembered breaking that Nightsister's neck, when he only wanted to subdue her. Then there were those horrible images of him doing horrible things to some woman's body. He was sure that it was not the Nigtsister's body he had done those things to. He was pretty sure he was outside somewhere when it happened. Tears came to his eyes as he lay there. He had no strength or desire to get up.

It was a while later, when the Ranger came to the cottage looking for Mother. It was evident that she had been crying. When she saw that Ludia was in the cottage, she did not want to say anything. But Mother made her give her report. She told her about spotting the two Nightsisters as they climbed onto the lowlands, they were trailing something, so she followed them. She heard them talking about a Rancor and a healer. Somehow they were together at first, then they seemed to have parted company.

Mother stopped her at that point. She spoke to one of the Sisters in the room, "Can you go talk to the herd Mother, and tell her not to eat the swamp Rancor. We have enough evidence that he really did help Krillgan. He should be rewarded, not eaten."

She then instructed the Ranger to continue. She told them about following them up the escarpment to the midlands. When they came to Lovers' Leap, they started making horrible accusations about the healer, which she had guessed to be Krillgan. They found fresh blood splatter on the ground. Then they noticed some material down the escarpment. They climbed down and found a torn woman's dress with blood on it. The dress looked like it may have been made by Mother Andriel. It sure looked like one of her designs. At the foot of the falls they found torn woman's undergarments. Downstream they found Krillgan's shirt, torn and bloody. She recognised it, before they said that it was the shirt the healer had worn to their party. They found his pants amongst some rocks, just before where the stream emptied into the ocean. Then they spotted a giant fish swimming at the bottom of the waterfall. "Krillgan's dead!"

Then she started crying again. Mother reached over and put her hand on the Ranger's shoulder. The Ranger was surprised that no one was reacting to her news.

Before she could question them, Krillgan who had been listening, had a spark of hope in him. The scenes she described were what he saw in his dreams. Could they have been all made up? He clearly wasn't dead. He stuck his head out the bedroom door and asked the Ranger whether it was a good thing or a bad thing to be dead. The Ranger screamed, "You're alive!" Then held her hands over her mouth.

"No! You just said I was dead. I certainly feel like it."

"Come and give me a hug."

Krillgan's face darkened, so the Ranger knew he was embarrassed.

"Not just yet. I need to dress first."

So she came over and kissed him on the cheek. "I'm just glad that you are whatever you are."

Krillgan ducked his head back into the bedroom and closed the door. The Ranger turned around and saw that everyone had smiles on their faces.

"You knew he was alive. Why didn't you stop me from making my report?"

Mother hugged her. "We needed to be sure the Nightsisters believed what they saw. If you believed it, than we a sure they did."

Mother than went on to describe to her the preparations they made, and who donated blood. The elders described how they planted the evidence, without setting foot on the lowlands.

Krillgan was listening to all this through the door. He started crying softly, it really was all just a bad dream. He started feeling better. He wiped his face, and started dressing. There were a number of pairs of underwear. His mother had sewn him a couple of nice shirts. Father outdone himself. There was a nice pair of soft leather pants, a nice leather vest, and a soft leather jacket. He was sure this was all Rancor leather. It was really hard to get Rancor leather this soft. That would explain why the leather garments were all slightly different in colour. Beside the chair was a brand new pair of leather boots, with little slots built in them for daggers. Beside them was his father's backpack. Which he and mother made when they first found out that they were coming to Dathomir. When he picked up the top piece of underwear, he found his two stone knives underneath. He wondered where they had gotten to. While he was dressing he heard a Sister reporting that the Fenelar Phoenix had been spotted over the ocean. It should be landing soon. He heard Ludia asking Diennu if she could go talk to Rasha. "It might be easier if she heard the news from her. She did not think that Krillgan was in any condition to tell her himself." Diennu agreed, it would be easier if she told Rasha about the engagement.

Mother left Kreen with Ludia, to bring Krillgan to the Phoenix. They were under strict orders. If they see a scavenger creature, kill it! They don't want to take any chances, with the Nightsisters finding out that Krillgan is still alive.

Diennu found Rasha at her mother's grave. When Rasha saw Diennu, she stuck her hands out to her, so that she would hold them. "I'm so glad that you and Ludia had me plant flowers on Mother's grave. I know I told you this before, and I will tell you this again. But it was the only thing I ever had a chance to do for her. The only way that I could thank her for loving me, and giving me the chance to let her know, I still love her." Diennu assured her that it was okay to keep telling her. This way she knew for sure that it really was her good friend Rasha who got off the ship, and not some imposter. The two young ladies hugged. Diennu told Rasha, that Ludia was with Krillgan, helping him to get ready to leave with them. This was news to Rasha, she only knew that they had received an urgent call from Kindell's World, asking them to come quickly. Diennu told her that she would tell her all about it. But first she needs to tell her something important about Ludia and Krillgan. Ludia wanted her to hear it from a friend. Rasha told her that she can tell her. "Krillgan asked Ludia to marry him."

"Wait, I thought you just said Krillgan was coming with us?"

"He is, but he is also engaged to Ludia."

"So are you warning me away from him?"

"Don't be silly. We are telling you because we love you. Even Krillgan. It's okay to still be his friend. I know I still love him with all my heart. Ludia is still my best friend, and I really, really love her. We just wanted you to know that he is no longer available."

"I did not think he would even consider me."

"He did, and so did father, the only question they had concerning you, was whether your father would let you marry him."

"It sounds like he was very serious about all this?"

"He was. He spent more than a day off by himself. Not eating anything, until he was sure in his heart who he should marry. He approached me first, to tell me that he was going to ask Ludia to marry him."

"Did it hurt when he told you?"

"Very much. But it helped knowing that he still loved me, and did not want to hurt me, even though he had too. My mother also helped me with it, and I knew I would not stop loving him. So we would like you to look after him, until he can come back for Ludia. Maybe you will get a chance to look after both of them then."

Rasha thank Diennu for telling her. Now she had mixed emotions. She was proud of the fact that Krillgan had seriously considered her as a possible life partner. But sad because he had chosen someone else over her. At least that someone else was Ludia. Someone she both loved and admired.

Diennu than told her about the Nightsisters trying to get their hands on Krillgan, and how their clan managed to fake his death. Which is why he must leave. She also warned her that these past few days have been very hard on Krillgan, so he might not be his usual self. Not to mention that he was leaving behind the woman he had recently asked to marry him. Rasha assured her, that she would do her best, to watch over him.

Ambling-Elu informed Captain Chrashan of the reason they contacted him. She had brought a number of kegs of New Ale, regular Ale, and fruit wine, as compensation for him and his crew helping them. The Captain assured her that they were more than adequately compensated for breaking their regular schedule. He apologised that he had not had a chance to make his regular tea purchase on their behalf, and hoped that they would not run out before he returns.

Mother was thinking the same thing, but did not tell him. She was planning on re-establishing trade with the town to see if they could get some tea through them.

It did not take long for the Sisters to load the kegs in one of his cargo bays. Captain Chrashan always wondered what it would take, for one of them to come along, and handle all of their cargo handling.

Krillgan and Ludia showed up holding hands, with Kreen watching over them, and always checking around them.

Erin and Aliyanna were the first ones to step forward, and say goodbye to their cousin, at Mother Andriel's prompting. Krillgan shook Erin's hand, but gave Aliyanna a hug, whispering in her ear, that she was growing up to be a nice looking lady, just like her mother. Aliyanna turned red and kissed him on the cheek, thanking him for the compliment. (She always found it strange that kissing him on the cheek, felt the same as when she kissed her mother on the cheek.) All the Sisters that were there, lined up to hug him, and say goodbye. Mother knew that all the Sisters that were not there were going to be upset that they missed this opportunity. She was sure that they would understand, she just needed to figure out a way to make it up to them. Amblin-Elu was the last Sister to say goodbye. She gave Krillgan a brace of Dathomirite daggers to take with him. She said that he could consider them as an engagement present, and asked him to hurry back for Ludia. He promised he would, and gave her a big hug. Neither one bothered to wipe the tears from their eyes. Mother Andriel was next. She could not help running her fingers through his hair a few times, asking him if he gets a chance to look up some of their old friends. He knows how to contact them. She too had tears in her eyes when she hugged him, and kissed him goodbye.

Father Chitrah made him recite all the codes for all of their accounts. Because they had not been touched for so long, he should be able to access them, as a survivor. He also warned him to conduct all his transactions in credits, because Hutt money is only good in Hutt space. Credits are good everywhere. He then held him close, and gave him a couple of kisses on his cheek. Diennu was the next to say goodbye with a hug and a kiss. Finally it was Ludia's turn. She had been crying with everyone else, and was still crying. She was the only one to kiss him on his lips, and they had a long embrace. She told Krillgan to come back soon.

Rasha had tears in her eyes from all the emotional goodbyes. She went up to Ludia and gave her a good hug. She told her not to worry, she would look after him. She then took Krillgan by the hand to lead him up the ramp onto the ship, because he kept looking at all the people he loved, that he was leaving behind, and did not watch where he was going.


	15. Chapter 15

©2016

They would have continued kissing if Krillgan's stomach hadn't started growling. He admitted to Ludia that he had not had anything to eat all day. She got up and started dragging him to the village. "I will not have my husband-to-be, starving to death, before we are married." The people in the dining hall were surprised to see Krillgan and Ludia enter hand in hand, and no sign of Diennu. Krillgan held up a hand, so everyone stopped talking, so that they could hear what he had to say. "I want you all to know that Ludia has just agreed to marry me." Everyone started talking at once. As they made their way towards the kitchen, people would reach out their hand to congratulate them. When they grabbed their dinners Ludia took more than she normally would, so she could top up his plate without them having to get up. While they were eating, people would come up to them to congratulate them. Things suddenly grew quite when Diennu entered the hall. She went and got her dinner and approached the couple. Ludia and Krillgan stood up as she approached. Since she was approaching on Ludia's side of the table. She placed her plate beside Ludia's, and hugged her best friend, congratulating her. They sat down together, and Diennu asked her friend how he proposed. When they sat down, people started talking again. Apparently some were worried that there might be fireworks. After Ludia told Diennu, how Krillgan proposed, she quietly ask Diennu how Krillgan had broken it to her. She could tell that Diennu already knew, before she entered the dining hall. Ludia had taken her hand, so she felt comfortable telling her. When she finished. Ludia hugged her, and thanked her for being her best friend. Diennu told Ludia and Krillgan, about the meeting that evening for the Sisters. They were going to be talking about the best way possible, for them to help Krillgan to prepare for the Nightsisters' Recruiting Party. So unless Krillgan had any suggestions for them, he did not have to come. Krillgan told them that he wanted to talk with mother and father after dinner, so if they wanted to see him after the meeting, they can find him with them. If not, he will meet them for breakfast. At the meeting a number of Sisters made proposals that they thought would help Krillgan, including having a Bonding Ceremony. The Clan Mother told them that the last thing Krillgan needs right now, is to see a lot of naked women. He will see a lot of that at the Nightsisters' Recruiting Party. After all the trouble they had accepting Krillgan as a Sister, they still have to acknowledge that he is a man. Men bond differently than woman. They bond by doing things with them. That is why his relationship with Ludia and Diennu is so strong. They have been bonding most of their life. Then she addressed Ludia directly. "Is it true what we heard, that you and Krillgan are now engaged to be married." "Yes he proposed to me this afternoon." "Congratulations daughter. To the rest of you Sisters, that means that we cannot afford to leave Ludia and Krillgan alone, until after the Nightsisters' party. Diennu that means that you have a very difficult assignment for the next month. You have to be their chaperone." She encouraged the other Sisters to actively engage Krillgan this next month. Challenge him to fighting stick duels. Practising the Martial arts with him. Critique his dancing routine, since he has altered it on the tour. If you are injured in practice, go to him first (that is something they already do). She reminded Kreen that berry season should be starting in a few days. She could challenge him to a berry picking contest. Kreen told her it would not work. Whenever she picks berries with Krillgan, none of them end up in the berry pail. This made all the Sisters laugh. Then Mother suggested that it be a berry eating and picking contest. Kreen said that it would not be fair to Krillgan. She is a nursing mother. No one can out eat a nursing mother. More laughter from the Sisters. Mother told her that they need to have some contest were the winner gets to lick the berry juice off of little Kindell's face, and the loser has to change her diapers. Again the Sisters laughed. Kreen was sure that if they went berry picking together, Krillgan would not mind changing Kindell's diapers. He has always had a soft spot for children. After the meeting, Ludia and Diennu rushed over to Mother Andriel's home.

After dinner Krillgan told his parents that he proposed to Ludia, and that she agreed to marry him. His parents had heard the rumour, but they were glad he came himself to tell them. He asked them what happens next, he was concerned that the Nightsisters' party that he was invited to, would interfere. They told him, that as his parents, it was there responsibility to talk with Ludia's mother, Amblin-Elu, to set a date, and to see that all the arrangements are being made. They asked him about the party he is invited to. He told them that the Sisters described it, just as Captain Richard had described it to them. It would start with the raping of the bride. All the food and drinks will be laced with aphrodisiacs to encourage sexual promiscuity of all participants. Normally the clans do not allow a Sister to attend that is under a vow of celibacy before marriage, to go. They will normally send another Sister in their place. "Since I am the only male Sister, there is no one they could send in my place." Andriel held her son, telling him that he would get through it. Reminding him that he has her blood in him to help him against all poisons. Chitrah reminded himself to ask Amblin-Elu for a Sister to help him to get to the pirate ship quickly. He needs to send a coded message to the Fenelar Phoenix through the Pirates Network. That he return to Dathomir as soon as possible. Chitrah was sure that Krillgan would need to leave Dathomir right after the party. Krillgan was happy that Ludia and Diennu came over after the meeting. Diennu let Krillgan and Ludia be alone on the rooftop patio, she knew that if she was just engaged, she would want some alone time with her man. Ludia told Krillgan about the meeting, and told him that Mother does not want them to be alone until after the party. Diennu was not supposed to let them be alone even now, but she is a good friend, and said we should be. Diennu told mother and father about the meeting, and that Mother did not what Krillgan and Ludia to be alone. That she is supposed to be up on the patio with them. Andriel and Chitrah wondered what was bothering Mother. They need to have some alone time. They will need to talk with Mother about this. Andriel asked how Diennu was doing, knowing Krillgan picked her best friend over her. Diennu admitted that it hurt a lot at first. Even though Krillgan was really nice about the way he told her. She had a nice long talk with her mother, and heard about her past relationships, and how she ended up marrying father. What blew her away was that mother had a list of every available guy in the clan who wanted to get married. She said that the Clan Mother is supposed to know everything about everyone, and she and her sister had been keeping tabs in case one of their daughters needed it. She has already told me about a couple of nice guys in the village who are near the end of their apprenticeship. She can arrange to have someone introduce me. She would not tell me which of them she preferred. They are not Krillgan, but they are both good men. She said that they would both make good husbands. Andriel gave her a big hug. She told her that she was a very beautiful girl, both in the heart where it counts most, and on the outside. Some young man is going to be very fortunate if he can win her heart. Diennu thanked mother. Her words meant a lot to her. Eventually Andriel went upstairs and told the couple that Ludia needs to go home to bed, because Diennu is ready to fall asleep on her feet. The next morning after breakfast, when Andriel and Chitrah went to talk with Amblin-Elu about wedding preparations, they were surprised to find the elders were already there. The elders were pushing Amblin-Elu to have Krillgan and Ludia get married right away. A celibate Sister should not be going to the Nightsisters' Recruitment Party. Mother countered, that it would be all right for a married man to go there and commit adultery? The elders said that Krillgan was strong and would not be unfaithful to his wife. But he does need her to vent the aphrodisiacs from his system. Mother countered that he would abuse her, and their relationship would be scarred for life right from the beginning. Mother turned to Andriel and Chitrah, hoping that there was something in their traditions that would prevent them from getting married right away. Chitrah said that normally when you arrange a marriage, you have a courtship period where the couple get to know one another. But Ludia and Krillgan have been courting most of their life. Once the young man asks the young lady to marry him. The only delays is in arranging permission from the governing authorities. Renting facilities for both the wedding ceremony and reception afterwards. Sending out invitations, arranging catering. Getting the apparel ready that the bride and groom and the wedding parties would be wearing. Amblin-Elu could not understand most of what he said. So she asked him, how long it would take for the clan to do everything he said. He told her that from the time she gave permission, as the local governing authority, he believed that it would take two days to have everything ready. Andriel backed him up. The elders were all for it. But still Mother resisted. When Chitrah saw that she wasn't going to budge, he asked that at least she provide him with a Sister to help him get to the pirate ship and back. So that he could send a message to the Fenelar Phoenix to come to Dathomir. Mother checked which Sisters were nearby, and assigned one to help Chitrah, and they were off. Andriel had another couple of requests that she wanted to ask the Clan Mother. Because of her tour, she wanted to dismantle her sewing machine and weaving loom. She wanted Chitrah to scan each part into his computer, so that he could get the trades people to recreate both machines, for each of the clans. She also wanted permission to design and build a special weaving loom. That can handle a wide variety of materials, including metal threads. The Clan Mother gave her permission for everything she wanted. She wanted Mother Andriel to leave, because the elders were not finished with her yet, and she did not want Mother Andriel to hear them arguing. After she left, elder Hm-Shassa asked Amblin-Elu if this was because of Kindell's prophecy. Was she not willing to let her daughter go with her husband? Amblin-Elu told them, that if they were not married when he left. He would come back for her when he is able to support her. Right now they have nothing, they will be dependent upon others to support them. What type of life is that for a Sister? At least on his own Krillgan will be more flexible in providing for himself, until he can establish himself to the point where he can provide for a wife, and child, if she gets pregnant. Elder Jielu said that what she is saying sounds good. But the real reason was that she was not willing to let go of her daughter. Amblin-Elu looked down at the floor. "She is all I have. Is it wrong for a mother to want to hold on to her baby girl, just a little while longer?" "Yes if it interferes with determining who is eligible to be the next Clan Mother. Besides, you have your sister, and your niece, and all of us." "It's not the same, and you know it." The elders made it clear what was at stake. But the Clan Mother had final say. Amblin-Elu knew she owed Mother Andriel and Father Chitrah an explanation on why she was opposed to Krillgan and Ludia marrying right now. Even if it wasn't the complete truth. When Mother was notified that Father Chitrah was back from sending the message, she asked Butashe if she knew where Diennu was. Butashe said that she was at Mother Andriel's home. Amblin-Elu invited her sister to come with her, as she spoke to Mother Andriel and Father Chitrah, about why she wants them to wait before they marry. Butashe was very curious about what her sister would say, because she heard all the arguments between her sister and the elders. When Mother entered Mother Andriel's home, she sent Diennu up to the patio to get Krillgan and Ludia. She did not say anything when a red faced Diennu went upstairs to get her friends. She told them all about Krillgan having to leave, after the Nightsisters' Recruitment Party, if Kindell's prophecy was going to continue to be fulfilled as it has so far. She told them that she was not ready to let her daughter go, knowing that she may never see her again. She knew Krillgan was very intelligent and resourceful, and would be able to survive out in the galaxy on his own. But it is a different matter altogether if he has a wife along, and the odds were in favour of them having a child within that first year. Mother Andriel and Father Chitrah assured her, that Krillgan would have access to enough credits that he and Ludia could live quite comfortably, even with a baby, for more than a year. As she said, Krillgan is resourceful they doubted he would need that much time to find a position that brought him sufficient credits to support a family. "On the surface that may be true, but remember Captain Chrashan said that the Republic and the Sith Empire were back, openly fighting one another. When Krillgan comes back for Ludia. I will have the confidence then to release Ludia into his care." With that Amblin-Elu left the home for them to talk about it. They knew that those were her conditions as Ludia's mother. That night, when Ludia came home, she knocked on her mother's bedroom door, asking if she could come in and talk with her. Amblin-Elu invited her into her bedroom, and patted the bed so that she knew to sit beside her mother. "If I promise to wait for Krillgan's return. Will you let us get married now?" Ludia saw her mother's eyes well up with tears. She kissed her daughter on her forehead. "Daughter, you don't know what you're asking of me. You don't know this. But I would love to see you and Krillgan get married right now, and you would if it wasn't for this Nightsisters' party. Trust me when I tell you this. I am doing this to protect you. I am not doing this to punish you, and I don't want to hurt you. I want you and Krillgan to have many happy years together. I also expect to be a grandmother more than once. Do you believe me?" Ludia looked into her mother's eyes. She saw no malice, only love, and a little pain. "I believe you." "Good girl. Now let me deal with the monsters." Ludia did not know what her mother meant. But she knew her mother saw them. Therefore they must be real. What no one in the clan knew, not Butashe, her closest friend, not the elders who seem to know everything, not even her own mother when she was still alive, was that Riktob rarely made love to her. He had a dark streak in him, and liked to abuse her when he had sex with her. When they were in bed, she was no longer a person, she was his play thing. He made himself believe that she enjoyed what he did to her, but she did not. She put up with it because she loved him. In his own way he loved her. When he found out that she was pregnant with Ludia. He got the entire village to come together and build a secret cottage for her. It was strong. The walls were thick. There was a small kitchen with a larger area adjacent to it where she could work with plants and potions. The main room was large enough that she could have a meeting with all the Sisters that were in town and not out on patrol, provided that they all stood. There was one comfortably sized bedroom. Carved into the bedrock under the cottage, with access from the kitchen, was a large cold storage area. Outside they planted beds of wildflowers. It is where most people go to pick flowers when there is a wedding coming up. She was into her third term of the pregnancy when Riktob brought her to it. With the whole village waiting there for her. Ludia was born in that bedroom. It's where she goes when she needs a break. But it did not negate what he did to her when they were alone in there. She was too ashamed and humiliated to tell anyone, especially when she became the Clan Mother. She had thought of permanently paralyzing him, from the neck down. But how to make it look like an accident. She would have lovingly cared for him for the rest of his life. But the force took him away from her instead. Now the elders want her daughter to be exposed to that type of monster, when she would be little more than a virgin. The monster would scar her for life. She had to protect her. If the elders knew what she did, they would understand.

Krillgan did not mind all the attention that his Sisters were giving him. Ludia made him show them the two stone knives that they made for him at the Great Canyon Clan. He had to explain to them that the knives can never be repaired if broken. You could not twist them or apply a sideways pressure on their blades. They were virtually undetectable, even with the sophisticated equipment they have in the galaxy. He had to demonstrate what he could do with them. The Sisters where surprised to find out that both Mother Andriel and Father Chitrah have a pair of them, each. But you would only ever see them if they or someone they loved was being attacked, and there was nothing else that they could do. They asked Ludia how she knew about them. Ludia blushed, and said that she only saw the pair that Mother Andriel had, when she suddenly made them appear to show the artisan that made Krillgan's knives, so that he could see what they wanted him to make. She told the Sisters that she was nervous sleeping the next few nights, being in the same bed with Mother Andriel, because she never saw her remove them before going to bed. The Sisters laughed, because they thought she was making it up. They asked her what she was going to do about Krillgan's knives on their wedding night. She told them that he promised her, if she finds them, she is allowed to remove them from him. The Sisters laughed again. They told her that it was only an excuse for her to get her hands on his body. She innocently replied that she did not know she needed an excuse. Which made the Sisters laugh again. When it was time to go to the Nightsisters' party, Krillgan was in the best shape of his life, he worked out with more Sisters in that month, than he had worked out with before. He broke more fighting stick than he could have imagined. Before that month, he would have thought them unbreakable. He enjoyed going berry picking with Kreen and little Kindell. Yes he did change her diaper, and he even licked the berry juice off her face. She laughed when he did that, and enjoyed rubbing the fur on his face. He went for walks with Ludia, and Diennu, and some young men from the village that also wanted to meet him. They told him that they remembered being healed by him when he first came to the village, and were proud to hear all the good things that people kept saying about him. Krillgan felt very close with all his Sisters, what he liked the most, was that Ludia was always there, so the experience was always shared. She is quite the warrior.

On the day of the Nightsisters Recruitment Party. Ludia kissed him goodbye. Diennu, his mother and father each hugged him. He was told by his Sisters not to take any weapons, because the Nightsisters will search him. He told them not to worry they will never find any. So they worried. He had quite the honour guard of Sisters accompany him to the gate and beyond. They were his rescue party if he ever gave the signal he was in distress and needed help. All he had to do was flash a force fireball on top of the Glass Mountain. They were all proficient with the water element, so even if there was a major high tide, which there will be. They could walk to the Glass Mountain on water shields. They all had a pair of Dathomirite daggers, and Father Chitrah assured them that the glass would be easily penetrated if the blades were activated, so that they could pull themselves up to the top of the mountain, catching the Nightsisters completely by surprise. They met the other invitees at the gate along with their escorts. Krillgan was surprised to see that Gwenlath from the Frenzied River Clan was among them. She told Krillgan that she convinced her Clan Mother that she was the best candidate from her clan who could help him. The other invitees told him that that was their instructions from their Clan Mothers as well. That was why they had so many escorts. They were ready to storm the mountain if they had to. The Sisters from the Singing Mountain Clan shared with the other Sisters how they were planning on scaling the Glass Mountain. The other Sisters felt that they could use the holes that they would make with their daggers to climb up after them. The Sisters divided up into two groups. Each group would wait at the trail head of one of the two trails leading down to the swamp. The invitees were supposed to meet the Nightsisters at the bottom of the trail closest to their village. The Nightsisters had planned on doing a very thorough check of Krillgan's body, to make sure that he wasn't carrying any weapons, and to check what else he was packing. But when they saw all the Sisters standing at the top of the trail, they felt intimidated and only did a quick search. They asked Krillgan if he had any weapons on him. He said yes, and held out his hands. "With these hands, I can easily snap your neck." They laughed because they thought he was joking. They were each assigned a Nightsister as their guide. They were told to keep their hand on their shoulder, because they would be blindfolded. The trail had many twists and turns, and pits along the sides. The Nightsister that was Krillgan's guide, kept trying to get Krillgan's hand lower than her shoulder. She was hoping that he would grab one of her mountains. He would always stop whenever she would try to do that. He kept his hand at the height of her shoulder, and would not continue until he felt her shoulder under his hand. The tide started coming in, they were already starting to splash water as they walked. The Nightsisters' Mother had to tell her to stop and just be a guide, because they were in danger of being caught in the tide before they reached the mountain. They completed the last part of the trip at double time because of that. The tide was already at knee height and climbing, by the time they entered the mountain. The Nightsisters removed their blindfolds so that they could climb the ramp as quickly as they could. It seemed like the water was trying to chase them as they quickly ascended towards the top of the mountain. When they reached the top, they were allowed a moment to rest. Then they were allowed to go to the edge of the mountain. The sun was setting. When they looked down, they saw that they were now on an island in the ocean. They were led into the Nightsisters' Temple where the party would take place. They were each assigned a place to sit. Before anything happened, a male slave came around with some bite sized treats. Krillgan was the first person he came to. He took one and put his tongue to it. There were no aphrodisiacs in it, but it was very salty. He knew that if he ate it, he would be very thirsty in no time. So he just left it on the table that was next to him. When the other Sisters saw his reaction, they refused it altogether. When the slave returned to the kitchen area. The Nightsisters' Mother hit him across his back with a whip, because she thought he should have been more persuasive. She made sure that she did not mark him anywhere with the hit, because she did not want any of her guests to know. The Nightsisters then entered the temple, and took their places. Many of the younger ones were scantily dressed, not leaving much to the imagination. Krillgan's guide was one of them. She caressed her mountains and ran her tongue around her lips when he looked at her. Finally the Mother's two lieutenants entered, followed by the Mother herself. Krillgan noticed that the one lieutenant had a scar across one cheek that looked like it may have been burnt, and a number of burns on the back of her arms. Her legs were covered but he bet there were burn marks there as well. This must be the Nightsister that tried to pretend that she was Amblin-Elu when she was younger. The only thing she had in common with the Clan Mother, was the colour of her hair. This woman had a masculine body, whereas the Clan Mother's body was very feminine, but very strong. She was no match for the Clan Mother. When the Nightsisters' Mother entered, she seated herself on what looked like a throne. The temple floor was layered, with the clan Sisters seated on the lowest level. The Mother was on the highest level and had a commanding view of everything in the temple. Krillgan also noticed the two pillars the Captain mentioned, with rings at the top and at the bottom. Where a person's limbs could be secured. The Mother would not have to move a centimeter to watch a person being beaten. Krillgan would not be surprised if the dark splotches on the pillars were dried blood. No wonder they have to drug people to get them to join them. The Mother welcomed her guests to the night's festivities and hoped that they would find some way to pleasure them. They were told that they would start the night's entertainment with the traditional raping of the bride. The village was promised that the female slave would be returned to them tomorrow, in time for her wedding. A pretty young lady was escorted out between two Nightsisters. She looked like she might be a year younger than Diennu. That the Nightsisters had not touched her until now, told Krillgan that they had been saving her for this day. He wondered how long ago she had actually asked to be married. It was obvious to Krillgan, being the son of a weaver, that the clothing she was wearing had no strength in the material. The two Nightsisters positioned her in front of a padded bench, and held her. The male slave that had been selected for this, was signalled by the Mother to begin. He quickly approached the young lady and started ripping handfuls of clothing off of her body. Krillgan thought that the male slave looked like he was enjoying himself too much. After he had torn every piece of clothing off of her, the two Nightsisters forced her to lie back on the bench. With one hand they pinned her down, with the other hand they grabbed the inside of her knees spreading her legs. The male slave slowly forced his horn into her secret place, as far as he could. Then he slowly pulled it all the way out. He turned his body so that the Mother could see he had blood on the horn of his manhood. He turned back and penetrated her place of secrets again. This time he went as hard and as fast as he could, not caring one bit about her. As a healer Krillgan knew that he was tearing her inside, and if it scarred, it would make childbirth that much more painful for her. He only stopped when he spent his seed inside of her. He rested on top of her for a moment before pulling his shrivelling horn out of her, and went and sat at the Mother's feet. The two Nightsisters pulled the young lady to her feet and told her to go to the kitchen for refreshments for their guests. She came back with a tray of drinks, and headed for Krillgan as she was instructed. Krillgan could see a trickle of blood, and some of the male slave's seed, running down one leg. She held her tray for him to grab the first drink. He didn't. He reached for a drink further back. In the process holding his hand against hers as she held the tray. She could feel a tingling in her secret place, and looked at him in amazement. She had heard the Nightsisters say that he was supposed to be a powerful healer. But this was unexpected. When he took the glass he selected off of the tray. She asked him if he was healing her. Krillgan held the glass in front of his face, and told her to be careful what she says to him, because they can read lips. Krillgan saw that she shifted her tray when she served the other clan Sisters, so they would not reach for the drink that was intended for Krillgan. Then she shifted it again so that a Nightsister took it instead, so she would not have to take it back to the kitchen. Fortunately for the Nightsister, she only lightly sipped on the drink. The next couple to entertain them went and stood in front of the bench where the bride-to-be, was raped. The Nightsister wore all sorts of brightly coloured garments. At first Krillgan wondered if she had no sense of taste or style. Then he remembered that their Mother is coordinating this show. She must have gone into every Nightsisters closet, and removed the brightest article of clothing she could find. The result was, what everyone in Krillgan's family would call an eyesore. She proceeded to sway her body, and removed a piece of clothing, throwing it amongst the people in the temple. Krillgan thought that this could be considered entertaining, if someone had been playing some musical instruments. The Nightsister than removed an article of clothing from the male slave. She went back and forth, removing articles of clothing, from both of them. Until they were both standing completely naked. Krillgan noticed that the young Nightsisters were the most enthralled by this. Gwenlath smiled at him, when she saw her look his way. So he knew that she was as much entertained by this as he was. Looking around, Krillgan noticed that he had a clear view of everyone, even though he was on the lowest level in the temple. He presumed that they placed him where they all had a chance to watch him. But this meant that he could also watch them. The Mother noticed that he had looked at her but he started looking somewhere else before they made eye contact. She was very disappointed that he was not watching the show. She considered this Nightsister to be her very best seductress. When he did look back at her they locked eyes, she could see that he had no fear of her. She saw his eyes were cold towards her. She thought that male healers were supposed to be full of compassion. There was no compassion in those eyes. He forced her to look away. It was a good thing he did, because he thought he saw the Nightsister take the male slave's horn of manhood into her mouth, out of the corner of his eye. He turned and looked. That is exactly what he saw. Now why would she do that? He forced himself to look away, because of what Mother and Yma taught him about how the aphrodisiacs that the Nightsisters use, work. If he is looking at something that is arousing him. The aphrodisiacs tend to magnify that stimulation to the point that it takes control of your brain. Causing you to force yourself on the person who is visually stimulating you. So if the Nightsisters' Mother had noticed that he had started looking at what this Nightsister was doing, she would have had more Nightsisters do it. Even right in front of him where it would be difficult for him to look away. There are other aspects to what the force enhanced aphrodisiacs do. For men, who have consumed large amounts, once they are fully aroused, their horn stays firm until the aphrodisiacs are purged from their system, no matter how often they release their seed. There is also the aspect that once they take control of the brain the person that is under its control has no conscience knowledge of what they are doing. They become a sex machine. Krillgan vowed that he would not let that happen, for Ludia's sake.

He found himself studying the Mother's face. He knew it was painted. But normally the Nightsisters paint it white, then paint black designs over that to hide how their faces have become distorted from using the dark side of the force. Her one lieutenant had painted her face that way. Scarface on the other hand has not bothered. The distortions are clearly visible, it is almost like she does not care anymore how her face looks. The Mother clearly cares because she mixed something with the white paint to give herself a pinkish face. But first she must have put something thick on her face that she could mold, to cover up her distortions. Then applied her special paint over top. Because from this distance it almost looks normal. Krillgan suspected that if she ever smiled, her face would fall off. It was too bad that the other clan Sisters were not close enough for him to talk to. They would have had a good laugh if he had been able to tell them. The next time that the bride-to-be, came around, she was carrying a tray of snacks. She positioned her body so that only Krillgan could see her face. She pointed to one of the snacks, and told him that she is supposed to get him to take it. But not to worry she knows how to get rid of it. Krillgan dropped a couple of drops of kolto on her skin. To continue healing her without touching her. He took the snack next to the one she pointed out. He commented out loud, "Not much of a selection is there." To let the Nightsisters know that they are not very good hosts. She smiled both because of the tingling feeling she was getting from the ointment he just placed on her skin, and because of his brashness. He was a fighter. She wondered if he is sharing ointment with her, that he had smuggled in for himself, knowing that everything he will be eating and drinking will have Nightsister's potions in it. She heard the Nightsisters talking about all the things they want to make him do, once he was under their control. She knew about the raping of the groom. The man she will be marrying tomorrow had fully expected to be told to come here with her. They were both surprised, and thankful that he wasn't. She now believes that it is because of this purple healer, that he wasn't called. The Nightsisters had heard that he is engaged to be married. So he is the one that they want for the raping of the groom. Only they plan on doing much worse than she has ever heard. How can she help him? How can she let him know that he has to get away? It would be better for him if he perished in the high tide waters, than stay here and fight the Nightsisters' potions with his ointment. After the Nightsister finished her show with the male slave. She went up to her Mother, to ask her how she did. She was expecting to hear praise. Instead her Mother told her that he was more interested in staring at her, than at watching their show. So she sent her to the kitchen to help the slaves serve everyone. The Nightsister knew that she was being punished for a poor performance. Since there was nothing else planned for a performance. The Nightsisters' Mother gave the signal that they were allowed to have sex with the male slaves. The Nightsister that the bride-to-be, gave Krillgan's special cup of potion to, had only finished half the cup. But it was enough to set her off. When she knew that she had permission. She knocked the tray of food, out of the hands of the closest male slave, and pulled him down on top of her, wrapping her legs around him. The only clothing that male slaves were allowed to wear at this party, were cloth vests. So they were all naked from the waist down. Some of the older female slaves were also allowed to wear vests, because the Nightsisters did not like looking at their sagging mountains. The young female slaves were all completely naked. None of the slaves were allowed to say anything if a Nightsister wanted to touch them. The Nightsisters did, just because they could. The Nightsisters also wanted to see if the slaves would be embarrassed by where they touched them and how they touched them. If the female slaves reacted, than the Nightsisters would be merciless in touching them. It was not unusual for a new female slave to be on the ground crying, while the Nightsisters fondled her all over. If she tried to use her hand to protect herself, she would be immediately secured to the posts and whipped until she bled. Then the Nightsisters would fondle her some more while her hands and feet are secure. Fortunately, all the slaves were veterans, and did not react to the touching. Krillgan tried hard to pace himself with the food and drinks they gave him. He spent most of the time looking at the Mother so that he would not have to look at the orgy taking place around him. One of her lieutenants thought that he might be more interested in men than women, even though they knew he was engaged to be married to the daughter of the Clan Mother of the Singing Mountain Clan. She sent one of the male slaves to dance before him. Krillgan took it as a welcome reprieve. The male slave blocked his view of everyone. Unfortunately the reprieve was short. The Mother realised that he could not see them. She slapped her lieutenant in the face for doing what she did, and ordered the male slave away. She told the lieutenant that it would have been better if she had danced before him, and showed him what she has to offer him. The lieutenant told her Mother that her body was much nicer, and would be more appealing to him. This lieutenant got where she was by knowing what to say, and when to say it. The Mother thought, "He is staring at me all the time, maybe I can entice him with my body. She asked the male slave that had raped the bride, and was still sitting at her feet. To push up her skirt. The slave got excited, maybe Mother wants him to pleasure her. He pushes up her skirt revealing that she was wearing nothing underneath. Krillgan was probably the only one who could see this. She then instructs the male slave to stand behind her and to reach down through the neck opening of her blouse and fondle her mountains. The slave considered this a great honour. He told the Mother as he was fondling her, that he would like to use his lips, his tongue, and his teeth on her. She told him that if he does a good job, she would let him. She tilts her head back and moans, opening and closing her legs, pretending she was in a moment of great pleasure. At the same time watching Krillgan out of the corner of her eye, to see if there would be any reaction. Nothing, he continued to stare with his cold eyes. She tells the slave to stop, and to remove his hands. She pushes her skirt down by herself. She tells the male slave to go get the purple man a new drink, obviously he has not drunk enough. Now Krillgan had been daydreaming while the Nightsister's Mother had put on her show for him. He was remembering the tournament his mother fought in, on Uvena Prime, and how much fun he had with his friend. When he saw the mother move her hands, straightening her skirt, and noticed that the male slave was no longer at her feet. He wondered what he had missed. When he saw the male slave return. He saw that he was carrying one of his special drinks. Krillgan gave a small pillow that was lying along the path he was taking, a slight push. The pillowed tangled in the male slave's feet causing him to trip. The drink ended up all over Scarface. Krillgan thought that this could not have been any better if he had planned it. Scarface gets up and starts wailing on the slave, using the force with her punches to make sure she was inflicting pain. The slave had curled up into a ball with his arms over his head to protect himself. He knew that it would be no use to complain, he just whimpered. He was saved, only because of Mother's intervention. Her lieutenant protests, showing her what the slave had done, telling Mother that this was not the first time. Claiming he was incompetent as a server. The Mother sends the slave back to the kitchen, telling him to handle only foods, and not touch the drinks. She tells her lieutenant to go wash up and change. The Mother had noticed Krillgan watching this with a smirk on his face. She wondered if he had anything to do with it. If he did, she did not sense it. Which would make him a very powerful force user. If she did try to enslave him as she wanted to. She would have to be very careful who she let near him. Even if she kept him drugged. He could force most of her Nightsisters to obey him and do his bidding. She might not be able to use him in her breeding program. Why did those stupid clan Sisters ever teach him how to fight? The bride-to-be, did what she could to help Krillgan. She took a big gulp out of a regular spiked drink, and topped it up with water. She wasn't worried about their being a smell on her breath. Because slaves were allowed to drink. In fact they were encouraged to take a glass that was almost empty, and drain it. Leaving a full glass in its place. They were not allowed to take a regular drink and water it down. Fortunately no one saw her. She went to Krillgan, letting him know which drink he should take from her. As soon as he tasted it, he knew why. She then took the drink that they had prepared for him, and went around topping up the Nightsisters' drinks with it. Again no one took notice. Krillgan was quite worried that if she continued doing this, she would be caught. He knew that if she was, he would be forced to defend her. He did not anticipate that the clan Sisters would be in any shape to help him. Fortunately most of the Nightsisters were in worse shape. Krillgan was confident that he could fight his way off the mountain. He could not stay and fight, because the Nightsisters' Mother had a Dathomirite sword somewhere. If he had to fight for her, she would not be getting married tomorrow. He was also concerned that she might be ingesting too many aphrodisiacs herself. So when he noticed that other slaves were showing that they were being affected by what they drank. He signalled her to put down her tray. He then started lowering her heart rate. She did not know what was happening. Suddenly she had no energy. There was a pile of pillows near the clan Sisters. She made herself comfortable. In a short time she was asleep. When he knew she was asleep, he raised her heart rate back to normal. None of the Nightsisters detected that he had used the force again. The clan Sisters were in awe, because they watched him do it. Later that evening, Gwenlath noticed someone carrying a tray of drinks, and one of Krillgan's drinks was on it. She signalled the person to come to her and grabbed Krillgan's drink off of the tray, and started drinking it. She did not know that it was the Nightsister who was forced to serve them. She went and told her Mother what the clan Sister had done. They started watching her because they were starting to question their recipe, since it did not seem to affect the healer. Gwenlath thought that she should be able to handle at least two drinks, because she believed that Krillgan had had more. Krillgan knew this was a disaster about to happen, and he could not stop it. With all the spiked food and drinks she had already consumed that evening, this could break her will. He knew that all the clan Sisters were trying to be strong because of him, and had not given into their desires. She had not finished the drink when a male slave walked by her. She grabbed him and kissed him. Then she tore off her clothes, oblivious of who was watching her. Making him have sex with her. Suddenly right in the middle of having sex, she fell unconscious. The Nightsister and her Mother watched the whole thing. They were pleased that the drink worked as they designed it. They talked about making this foolish clan Sister, a Nightsister. Now that they had control over her. They decided that the male healer was still their top priority. After they controlled him, they would start working on her. When Gwenlath succumbed, it was not long before the other clan Sisters gave in to their desires. Krillgan knew that it was time for him to leave. He knew that they would not just let him walk out of here. So he had to think of another way out. He got up out of his chair like he was having trouble because he was drunk. The Nightsister who was serving, came up to him, asking what he was doing. He slurred his speech telling her that he had to go relieve himself, because he was full up to his eyeballs. The Nightsister told her Mother that he was drunk and needed to relieve himself. The Mother told her to take him to the slaves' latrine. They did not have a men's and women's latrine on the mountain. They had the Nightsisters' latrine, and the slaves' latrine. As the Nightsister led the healer away, the Mother wondered if they may have been looking at this all wrong. The healer is not human, even if he looks similar to one. Maybe the aphrodisiacs have no effect on him. His weakness might be alcohol. Then she wondered if they really could breed him. What if his seed was not compatible with a human female's egg? Then they wasted a lot of time and energy trying to seduce and enslave him. She was thinking too hard, she needed a distraction. A nice young male slave was nearby. She stood up and called him over to herself. When he was standing directly in front of her, on the next level down, she lifted her blouse and put it over his head. She looked down into her blouse, and told him to enjoy. The slaves' latrine was dark, and reeked. It was only the Nightsisters' latrine that was lit and cleaned regularly. The Nightsister stood in the doorway. The longer she stood there the more her eyes were able to adjust to the darkness. Krillgan was a long time in relieving himself. He really was full to bursting. When he finished, he teased the Nightsister. "Don't you want to look before I put it away? It might not be worth all the trouble you Nightsisters are going to, to try and get your hands on it." She was curious to see it. She also did not know that Krillgan had already put his horn away. When she was close enough Krillgan grabbed her. He wanted to put a choke hold on her and subdue her. But because of all the drugs pumping through his system, he misjudged his strength, and snapped her neck. He just let her naked body drop to the floor of the latrine. Later he realised that it was better this way. If he had subdued her, they would have tortured her to death for letting him escape. Krillgan knew that the only Nightsisters not at the party were guarding the ramp. He could not see the ramp when he stepped out of the latrine. So he knew the guards could not see him. There was only one way down for him. He took a couple of deep breathes, then started running for the edge of the mountain, as fast as he could. He knew that he needed to use the ledge as a springboard, to jump as far from the mountain's edge as possible. The clan Sisters had told him, that ever since the big fire that the Nightsisters had used to make Glass Mountain, they noticed the ground around the mountain had been sterilised by the heat of the fire. So nothing grew around the entire mountain. Now over the years the swamp would try to claim the land back. So every few years the Nightsisters would light another ring of fire around the mountain, to push the swamp back. Krillgan did not know how big the deadzone around the mountain was, because he was blindfolded when they brought him to the mountain. He just knew that he did not want to land in it. So when he hit the ledge around the mountain, with both his feet. He used all his strength, and all the force energy he could muster to push himself away from the mountain. With the drugs in his body and the air rushing around him. He wanted to scream, "I'm Free!" Normally because of his Chagrian heritage, he would have had no trouble seeing at night. But tonight when he looked down (he was hoping he was looking down) all he could see was blackness. He kept pushing down with the force to try and slow his descent, but could not feel anything solid pushing back. At one point he started panicking, thinking that he still might be back in the latrine, hallucinating all this. That thought quickly disappeared when the first branch hit him. It was too solid, and hurt too much to be a hallucination. He quickly reached out with his left arm and the force to embrace the tree. To help slow him down. At the same time reaching down with his right hand to force push down, as hard as he could. Still he could feel nothing solid. The branches were cutting and tearing at the flesh on his arm, but he did not care. He found that he had no sense of distance or time. Nothing really seemed real. He finally stopped falling holding onto a branch with both hands and feet. His natural eyesight was useless. He had no idea how much farther he needed to fall before reaching the ground. He just hung there and let his body heal all the cuts, tears, and abrasions. When he felt better, he knew that the only thing he could do was let go and drop, hoping that he did not have far to go. He let go and almost immediately landed on his buttocks, on some very soft, but very wet moss. Krillgan started to laugh, no wonder he could not feel the ground. There most be a very thick layer of moss in this part of the swamp. Whenever he pushed down with the force, the spongy moss must have absorbed the push. It still slowed him down, but he had no feedback, about hitting something solid. He had no idea where he was or where he needed to go, he felt like he was losing control of his body. He needed to get to somewhere safe, and he needed help. He reached out with the force to see if he could sense any life around him. He ignored all the insects and all the little creatures he could feel scurrying about in their daily life and death struggle to survive. He felt a large enough life force not too far away. He hoped it would help him. He tried standing up but could not, because of the soft moss. He found that he had to crawl on his arms and knees, if he wanted to get anywhere. He actually could not use just his hands, because he would push them through the moss. He had to use his forearms with his hands spread, to stay on top of the moss. It was very slow going. When he was close enough to the creature, that he could identify it with the force, he stopped and reached out to it. It was a Dathomir Boar. A very big one. Krillgan tried talking to it as a Rancor. Though boars are intelligent creatures, they were no-where near as intelligent as a Rancor. So Krillgan had a hard time getting through to it. The good news was that it did not run away. He was able to get it to understand that he wanted help getting out of the swamp before the next major tide. The boar could not come out onto the moss, so Krillgan had to crawl to it. He kept connected to the boar, and sensed that it was surprised to see that it was a human that had reached out to it. Humans were a predator, he was their prey, but this one seemed different. The boar found it amusing to watch the human crawl on the moss. It asked Krillgan how it got out there. Krillgan told him that he fell out of a tree, because he did not know where he was going. He told the boar, that the Nightsisters had poisoned him. Now he had trouble telling where he was going. The boar recognised the image of the Nightsisters with their painted faces. He knew they were the enemy of all his kind. The boar for some reason seemed willing to help him. The boar was large enough that it let Krillgan crawl up onto its back and rest. While the boar found the way out of the swamp. Suddenly the boar stopped. Krillgan could smell it too. There was a Rancor up ahead. Krillgan got off of the boar, onto unsteady feet. He told the boar to run away, he would protect him. The boar had no doubt that as long as he kept the human between himself and the Rancor, he was safe. He thanked the human for willing to sacrifice himself for him. He left knowing that this the way of the swamp, some get eaten, while others get away. Krillgan reached out to the Rancor. He told him that he has become separated from his herd, and was not feeling well. He needed to get back to them, so that they could help him. The Rancor asked him what his herd was called. Krillgan told him the Singing Mountain Clan. The Rancor knew this herd. They controlled the lowlands where he had to go when there was a major tide covering the swamp. They were well fed and tolerated the Rancor that came up to the lowlands for sanctuary. Sometimes they were even gracious enough to give them permission to hunt while they were waiting for the waters to go down. They were large Rancor, and every swamp Rancor feared them, and obeyed. Secretly every swamp Rancor dreamed of the chance to become part of that herd. But they were small and would be eaten if they tried to approach the herd mother. The Rancor asked Krillgan how his herd would treat him, if he helped him. Krillgan told him that he would speak with the herd Mother on his behalf. He was sure that the herd Mother would accept him, for helping one of her herd. The Rancor told Krillgan that he could approach, he would not hurt him. When Krillgan walked up to him, he could smell that he was not a female. He asked Krillgan why he deceived him. It was only females that rode Rancor. Krillgan asked him how he could talk with him, if it was only females that rode Rancor? The Rancor had to sit down to think about that one. He asked Krillgan, if there were other males like him? Krillgan told him he was the only one. The Rancor was satisfied. If he was the only male, then none of the swamp Rancor would know about him, and he would be special to his herd. The Rancor let Krillgan climb up onto his back. In no time the Rancor was at the edge of the swamp, and started to climb the cliff to the lowlands. He avoided the trail because he had earlier smelt the presence of the females at the top, and there were mixed herd smells. Not a place to be for a small Rancor with no herd attachments. When he reached the lowlands the Rancor stretched his legs and started running at a comfortable pace. He could hardly wait to be accepted as part of a herd. He would never have to go hungry again. Right now he was very hungry, and it did not help that this man smelt like Dathomir boar, not a Rancor herd. He easily ducked under the low hanging branches of the lowland trees. As he approached the cliffs of the midlands he smelt a small group of the herd he was looking for, and started running towards them. He spoke to the man on his back to tell him that he had found his herd. But there was no response. Then he realised that the man was no longer on his back. He must have knocked him off in the trees. The Rancor sat down and started to cry, because now he was going to be eaten. The Singing Mountain Clan's patrol spotted the Rancor approaching them, then stop and sit down and start crying. What unusual behaviour for a Rancor. The Sister in charge of the patrol stopped everyone. She got down off her Rancor and approached the crying Rancor on foot. She asked the Rancor why he was crying. The Rancor told her that he was crying because now he was going to be eaten. They Sister asked him why he thought that. He told her that he has come deep into her herds' territory without permission. So now he must be punished, and the only punishment he knows is that he will be eaten. The Sister asked him why he had come this far into their territory, and it looked like he was looking for them. The Rancor told her about the male he encountered in the swamp who smelled of boar and not of a herd. But he said he was part of a herd and needed their help. The Rancor told her that the man said he was part of her herd. The Singing Mountain Clan herd. But he wasn't paying attention and must have knocked the man off in the trees. So now there was no one to talk to the herd Mother for him. So now instead of being fed, he was going to be eaten. So he started crying again. The Sister had to calm him down, and assure him that he was not going to be eaten for trying to help one of their herd. She told him that she was going to ask her Rancor to come and sniff him. If the man he was trying to help was on his back. Her Rancor would recognise his smell. She went back to her patrol. She told them that the swamp Rancor claims that he was helping Krillgan. But must have knocked him of his back when going through the trees. She climbed back up on her Rancor's back and went into their supplies. She pulled out the last porridge cake, and jumped down. Her Rancor looked at her. She told her Rancor that the swamp Rancor claimed that Krillgan smelt like Dathomir Boar, and that he was hungry. He must be very hungry if he was smelling Dathomir Boar for a long time, and did not try and eat Krillgan. Her Rancor understood, she also told her that one porridge cake would not do much in her big stomach, so maybe it was better for the swamp Rancor to have it. When they approached, the swamp Rancor was surprised that the Sister offered him something to eat. So he munched on the cake while the female Rancor sniffed him. The Rancor confirmed that Krillgan had been on the swamp Rancor's back, and there was the strong smell of boar. The Sister thought about what she should do next. She asked the swamp Rancor if he would be willing if one of her people rode him back to her herd Mother. The person would not be able to communicate with him, and if he knocks her off, there would be no one there to stop him from being eaten. The swamp Rancor understood. He promised that he would be more careful. The Sister looked at her favourite scout, and asked her if she was willing to go for the ride of her life. They need to know that Krillgan has escaped the Glass Mountain. The scout was thrilled at the idea. So the Sister handed her one of her flags to wear, so that the swamp Rancor would not be attacked when approaching the village. Then the Sister turned to her other scout, and handed him one of her other flags. He was to make his way to the top of the trail to the swamp that was near the Nightsisters' village. He was to tell the Sisters there that Krillgan has escaped the mountain. There was no need for them to wait there any longer. She was going to retrace where the swamp Rancor has been in case Krillgan is just lying on the ground unconscious.

When the healer and her Nightsister, did not return. The Nightsisters' Mother was starting to get angry, maybe her best seductress had manage to seduce the healer in the latrine. Not the best place to have sex, but she was very opportunistic. She also knew that her Mother wanted to be the first to have her way with him. She sent Scarface to go see what was taking them so long. Her lieutenant returned very quickly. She told her Mother that the Nightsister was dead, and that the healer was nowhere to be found. The guards are at their posts, so he did not go down the ramp. At first the Mother was happy to hear that her Nightsister did not defy her. Then she realised that the male healer was gone. She ordered everyone to look for him. She even told them to get one of the guards to help. She tried to rouse her Nightsisters that had passed out in the temple, but they were too far gone, because of the drugs and alcohol in their system, to be of any use. With the help of the kitchen staff, one of the guards, and the serving slaves that where still on their feet. The lieutenants conducted a thorough search of the mountain. They told their Mother that the healer was no longer on the mountain. She ordered every Nightsister to start searching the swamp. There was no longer a need to keep a guard posted. If the healer was foolish enough to jump off of the mountain, she wanted his body found. She even went down to the swamp to help them.

Krillgan had fallen asleep, while riding on the back of the swamp Rancor. He was feeling nauseous and not fully in control of his body. It did not help when that branch suddenly struck him in the gut, winding him, leaving him just hanging there trying to catch his breath. Wondering how he got there. He could not remember the boar, or the Rancor. They just seemed like part of a dream to him. But he did remember that he loved running through the branches of the trees, from one tree to another. He let his instincts take over. He knew that he needed to get to his safe place, someone would be waiting there to help him. Every Sister had a safe place, a place where they were conditioned to go when they were under duress. Most were conditioned to head for the temple, or the training ground. The younger Sisters of the Djo family were conditioned to head for the Clan Mother's cottage. That is where Ludia and Diennu would head when under duress. Krillgan was the only Sister of the clan that was conditioned to head for Lovers' Leap. It was where the stream that originated at the temple in the main village, wound its way past every village in the highlands, before tumbling over the escarpment onto the midlands. There it made its way southwest through the heart of the midland forest, to where it emerged and went over the edge of the midland escarpment to the lowlands beneath. It continued its short southwest trek through the lowlands, until it went over the cliff edge into the ocean below. The waterfall from the midlands to the lowlands was called lovers leap. Because they found the dead bodies of two lovers that were cheating on their spouses at the bottom. It was a beautiful place in the midlands. It was also a place where many Sisters through the ages, brought their lovers and surrendered their virginity to them. This place was chosen by the Clan Mother for Krillgan because it was the closest safe place in the midlands to the southern coastal swamp, and the Glass Mountain. From the beginning when Krillgan came to the Singing Mountain Clan, it was assumed, that if Krillgan was in duress, it would be because of the Nightsisters. Because of his healing ability, there was nothing else that could cause him duress. So when Krillgan emerged from the lowland forest, at the base of the midland escarpment, he did not hesitate to climb it to the top. Then he followed the edge of the escarpment west until he reached Lovers' Leap. By the time he reached his safe place, he was no longer Krillgan. The drugs had taken over his mind and now controlled his body. The next female he met, young or old, it did not matter what she looked like. He was primed to rape her.

The Clan Mother was waiting for Krillgan at his safe place. The elders had argued with her about this. She was the Clan Mother she should not risk herself like this. Amblin-Elu refused to give in. They knew that she believed that she was doing this to protect Ludia. She made it abundantly clear that as her mother she had to do it. The elders had convinced Butashe to go instead, for the sake of the clan. Amblin-Elu was horrified that they would even suggest that. Butashe is her baby sister, she could not let her face that monster. She had to protect her, just as much as her daughter. When the elders realised that their Mother was not backing down, they knew they had to stop fighting her, and figure out how to help her. Amblin-Elu asked them not to follow her. She did not want them see her humiliate herself for Krillgan's sake. But two of them did. So she undressed where she was sure they would find her clothes. There was also a pretty dress that Mother Andriel made for her that she herself had shredded. Along with torn undergarments. There was a vial of blood that Butashe donated, as the only way that Amblin-Elu would let her help. Ludia and Diennu also donated blood. It was in the bottle with the blood Mother Andriel donated. She knew that the elders would know what to do with all of it. All she had on was her cloak to keep her warm until Krillgan showed up. When Krillgan entered the clearing, all he knew was that there was a female standing there. When she dropped her cloak revealing her naked body. All he could see was the naked torso. He had no idea who it was. He just saw an apparition floating before him of what he wanted. He ripped off his own clothes as easily as the male slave had torn the clothes off of the bride. His extra strength was not from the force, but from the drugs and the high levels of adrenaline and testosterone they had induced in his system. When he was free of all hindrances, he tackled the torso he saw before him before it could get away. He forced himself on it, and started grunting worse than a Rancor. Amblin-Elu suspected that she would have major bruising over most of her body, from the way she was tackled. But then she felt tingling all over her body. The healing oil in Krillgan, was now healing her. She also sensed that something else had come with it. Some of the aphrodisiacs in his blood had dissolved into his healing oil. So every time he hurt her, than healed her. More aphrodisiacs would enter her system. It would be really bad for both of them, if she also lost control of herself. She dissociated her mind from her body, something that she learnt to do with her husband. Now Krillgan had full control of her body, and could do whatever he wanted to with it, and she would not feel it. She went to her happy place, the forest and fields around the village where she and her sister grew up. She relived those happy times when they played together, and discovered the force together. It wasn't until they were much older that she found out that Butashe was not supposed to be a force user. Amblin-Elu was so glad she was. She could not imagine what life would have been like without her. She has always needed her sister to be there for her, and she always was. Suddenly Amblin-Elu felt herself falling. She quickly re-associated herself with her body. They had both slipped over the edge of the escarpment. She tried lifting their bodies with the force, but she was not strong enough. She could only hope to give them a soft landing when they reached the base of the waterfall at Lovers' Leap. Suddenly a very powerful force grabbed them, and picked them both up. It lifted them both back over the edge of the escarpment. It was the two elders, Hm-Shassa and Yma. They asked her where they wanted her to put them down. Amblin-Elu told them to drop them in the stream, Krillgan needs to start cooling off. They told her that she needs to pay more attention. It would have been disastrous for the clan, if she would have been found at the bottom of Lovers' Leap by her own Sisters, especially with the way Krillgan is right now. Krillgan had been oblivious of everything that was happening around him. He just kept grunting away. Amblin-Elu on the other hand, was very conscience that she was totally naked, with her soon to be son-in-law, between her legs just grunting away, with two of her elders carrying on a conversation with her, while they held them suspended in the air, with nothing to hide them. Amblin-Elu asked them if they found the clothes and the blood. They said they did. "So you know what to do." They said they did. They will tell her later that they also found something else. When they grabbed them, the force revealed that Krillgan had two knives hidden on his person. When they let go of them over the stream. They held onto the knives. Amblin-Elu was prepared for the shock of hitting the cold water, and held her breath. Krillgan was not, and got a mouthful of cold water. He momentarily stopped what he was doing. But he stubbornly held onto his prize. When they resurfaced, Krillgan coughed to clear his airways, then went back to his grunting. Amblin-Elu used the force to carry them upstream, always checking both sides, to see if there was an appropriate place to beach, and get out of the water. It was good that they were in the water. Krillgan's body was producing and consuming hormones at a very high level, his body temperature had started to rise. If it had not been held in check by the cold stream water, he could easily have overheated, and caused severe brain damage. It was Amblin-Elu that was now in danger of hypothermia. So she clung to Krillgan as her only heat source, and controlled both their body temperatures. Whenever he started getting too hot. She would dunk him. Either by both submerging, or by rolling over. Either way, Krillgan ended up with a mouthful of water, and a brief coughing fit when he was allowed up for air. Ironically Krillgan needed those mouthfuls of water to help him stay hydrated. The water also helped to carry away his seed. He never experienced a true climax because of the aphrodisiacs. He just did not tire. Every time he released his seed, it only drove him to want to experience it over and over. They went upstream for quite a few hours. It was only when the light of predawn appeared that Amblin-Elu sensed that Krillgan's heat output was starting to diminish. She found a nice thick bed of grass on the west side of the stream. This was perfect, because it received the morning light. She beached their bodies, but stayed near the stream in case she had to cool Krillgan down. She was sure the elders were someplace nearby, ready to help her once Krillgan was spent, and all the aphrodisiacs had been consumed.

One of the guards found the marks left by the swamp Rancor, where it climbed the cliff face. She found that odd because it was still hours away before the next major tide. Rancors are usually one of the last creatures to leave the swamp because they like to intercept and feed on the other creatures that are trying to escape. So she backtracked and found the footprints of a human approaching the Rancor. She went and found her Mother the two lieutenants and the other guard, and brought them to that spot. The Mother ordered the two guards to climb to the top and follow the Rancor's tracks. Apparently the healer was still alive. She and her lieutenants decided to backtrack, to see if they could determine how he survived the jump off of the mountain. They followed the footprints back to where they were next to those of a huge Dathomir Boar. They realised that it must be one of the biggest boars in the swamp. They followed the boar's tracks back to the edge of a bed of moss, where it had been feeding. It was hard to tell if this was where the healer made contact with the boar. They could see drag marks over the moss. They knew the boar could not have made them. So the Mother ordered Scarface to follow them to see what she could find. When Scarface stepped out onto the moss, she sank up to her waist. The Mother told her that she will have to do what the healer did and drag herself across the surface. Scarface complained that the moss was all wet, and she would be soaked. Her Mother reminded her that it was better than her being dead. So she first had to climb out of the moss. Then she had to figure out how to travel across it. It was painfully slow crawling across the surface of the moss. Her Mother asked her, if she could go faster? She just said, "No!" It was quite a while before her lieutenant yelled back that it looked like the healer had fallen down out of a tree. She could see what looked like broken branches above her. Her Mother asked her if she could climb the tree and have a closer look. It was predawn when her lieutenant called back and said that she found some leaves and branches with blood on them. Her Mother asked if she could bring them to her. She heard her lieutenant swear, she forgot to bring a knife. The only way she could cut the green branch off, is if she chewed it off.

The guards followed the Rancor's tracks until they were lost by a patrol's tracks covering it up. The only chance they had was to backtrack along the patrol's tracks to see if the Rancor's tracts left them. As they backtracked they found the spot where the patrol intercepted the Rancor. They could see where the Rancor was sitting on the ground. The one guard spoke to the other. "This does not make sense, if the healer was on the Rancor. Won't they have taken him back to their village?" The other guard agreed. She suggested that they continue to follow the Rancor for now. They followed the Rancor's trail to the base of the escarpment. They climbed up the escarpment, and one guard started to follow the Rancor's trail. The other guard called her back and pointed out that someone was following the edge of the escarpment on foot. She asked the guard to put her foot beside the footprint. She told the guard that she heard that she has one of the largest feet of all the Nightsisters, yet the footprint is larger than hers, so it must have been made by a man. They backtracked to where the footprints started. Definitely he climbed up here. The other guard speculated that the reason the patrol did not escort the Rancor, was because the healer was not on its back. The patrol must have followed the Rancor's trail back to where they must have believed the healer left the Rancor. So the two guards started following the man's footprints wondering where they would lead them. They themselves did not notice that they were also being followed. A Sister, who was also a Ranger had spotted them when they first appeared on the lowlands. She followed them because she saw that they were tracking something, or someone. She had to be careful because it was already the predawn sky.

Amblin-Elu noticed that Krillgan was not as hot as he was before, and was starting to show signs of fatigue. She rolled them away from the stream into the soft grass. She continued to let him have his way with her, until he collapsed on top of her, fast asleep. She rolled over putting him on his back, and got up. There were a few broadleaf plants at the edge of the small clearing. She picked some leaves and covered him. That would have to do for now. The elders appeared with her clothes and cloak. They also showed her the two stone knives that he had hidden on his body. She went back to the stream to wash herself as best she could. She told the elders that Ludia had warned her about them, but she could not find them when he first attacked her. The elders asked her if she thought they were a danger to her. She told the elders that if he had still had them on him, went he went through one of his violent spells, he would have cut both of them, hoping that it would enhanced his pleasure. Hm-Shassa wondered where their Mother had gotten so much knowledge. There is little written in the book of Knowledge and Wisdom on this subject. She wanted to talk with Yma about what she had suspected for a long time. It would account for her odd behaviour over this matter. Maybe their Mother was right. They helped Mother dress, she was shivering, so there was no question that she needed her cloak. They all helped each other through the forest and up the escarpment to the highlands. They raced across the highlands to Mother's cottage. Ludia and Diennu were waiting there for them. They asked Mother if Krillgan was going to be all right. She told them that he was fine and resting. She gave them a thick stiff carpet. She told them where they would find Krillgan. She told them to wrap him in it, and not let him out, because he was too weak. She gave Ludia a little piece of porridge cake. She told her that if he wakes up, and complains about being hungry. That is all she could feed him. She can give him handfuls of cold water from the stream, as much as he wants, just don't let him out. When the two young ladies left to go find their friend, Mother went over to her mixing bench to prepare herself a potion. It is the same potion that they give to women who are raped, to help them from getting pregnant.

On the Glass Mountain it was the bride-to-be who woke up first. She quickly woke up the clan Sisters cautioning them to be quite. The Nightsisters were still asleep. She could not seem to wakeup Gwenlath, and asked one of the Sisters to wake her. When Gwenlath would not wake up by normal means, she took drastic measures. She covered her mouth, and pinched her nose shut until she opened her eyes. She let go of her nose but kept her mouth covered. Gwenlath took two deep breathes through her nose, before the Sister asked her if she was awake enough to function. She nodded her head yes, so the Sister removed her hand from her mouth, and told her to dress quickly. When Gwenlath put her clothes on, she remembered having ripped them off. Now she could not cover herself up. She looked around to see if she could find something to wear. All she could find was a bright piece of clothing that looked like it might fit her. They all knew where it came from. She put it on, then she put her own clothes on top. The other Sisters told her that it did not look bad when she wore it like that. The bride-to-be led them to the kitchen where they were told that the only thing safe for them to have was the water. They all drank a couple of glasses because they were all dehydrated, and they all had bad headaches. The bride-to-be found her clothes in the storage room where she left it. She told them that they have to hurry, because a major tide should be coming back soon, and they would be trapped here for most of the day, and she had no plans on miss her wedding. They said they had to use the latrine before leaving, after drinking all that water. As they excited the building they asked the bride-to-be if there was any sign of Krillgan. She told them that his chair was cold, so he hadn't sat in it for a long time. When they entered the slaves' latrine they found the dead body of the Nightsister. One of the Sisters touched her, and told them the body is very cold. She has been dead for a long time. They all did their business as quickly as possible. When they made their way to the top of the ramp, they found no one there. Gwenlath told them that Krillgan must have escaped, and every Nightsister that has not passed out, must be out looking for him. They quickly made their way down the ramp. The temptation was to run. But if you did that, there would come a point where your legs could not keep up with your body. Then you would smash into a wall at high speed, going head first. They still managed to get down faster than they went up, and they had all run up, because the tide was chasing them. It was not hard for the bride-to-be to find the trail, and all the Sisters followed her. When they made it to the lowlands they were surprised that none of their Sisters were there. One of the Sisters reminded them that they were all here because of Krillgan. If they received word that he was no longer on the mountain, than there was no need to hang around. When they looked back over the swamp, they could see that the tide was already starting to cover the swamp. They made it out just in time. Then she took them with her to her village, where the people welcomed them. They insisted on serving them breakfast before they continued on their way. Some of the women came up to Gwenlath, and mentioned that it looked like she needed their help. An embarrassed Gwenlath was led into a room where she removed her clothes, and handed them to the ladies holding needle and thread. They gave her a robe to wear while she had breakfast with her new friends.

The Nightsisters Mother told Scarface to hurry with her chewing, because the tide should be returning soon. Scarface called back that she had already chewed through the branch, it was traveling on the moss that was slowing her down. She handed the branch to her Mother before making it all the way off the moss. The Mother asked her if she was sure it was the healer's blood. It looks darker than normal blood. Scarface told her that she was not sure, but when she looked up from this broken branch, she could see a trail of broken branches going up the tree. So if it wasn't the healer's, it was another creature that fell out of the sky. Their Mother told them, "We may not have the healer, but we still have the other Sister that drank his potion. Let's go back up and have some fun." They made it to the base of the Glass Mountain just as the tide waters reached it. Again they had to race up the ramp to keep ahead of the tide. When they went into their temple they could see that some of the Nightsisters were starting to stir. Their Mother noticed right away that some people were missing. The bride-to-be and all of the clan Sisters were gone. Including the drugged one. The Nightsisters' Mother screamed. It was a terrible sound to begin with. Much worse when your head is pounding.

Ludia and Diennu found Krillgan lying right where Mother had told them. Naked and covered in leaves. They did not bother removing the leaves when they wrapped him up. When they lifted him to their shoulders, they heard a feeble, "Where am I." They placed the carpet on the ground and looked in the one end. They told him that he was in the middle of the midlands, and that they were taking him to Mother's cottage. He asked them if they would let him out. They told him no. Mother had given them specific instructions that he had to stay wrapped up, until they reached the cottage. He then asked if he had hurt anyone last night. He had had some really bad dreams, and was afraid that he hurt someone. Ludia and Diennu told him that they had not heard of anyone being hurt. They asked him what he remembered from last night. He told them that the last thing he remembered was jumping off of the Glass Mountain, thinking he was a bird. Both women laughed. "If you were a bird, than your feathers have turned into leaves." Krillgan was suddenly embarrassed. He could feel the leaves against his body, but nothing else. He told them he was thirsty. So they both went to the stream, grabbed handfuls of water and brought it back for him to drink. They probably spilt as much water in the carpet as he managed to drink. They had to make a few trips before he was satisfied. Ludia then gave him the small piece of porridge cake for him to chew on, that Mother had given her. When he finished it he asked her for more. Ludia told him that Mother had said that that was all he could have. Krillgan thanked them and did not ask for anything more. The two young ladies, again picked up the carpet with him inside it. Krillgan did not remember that trip, because he had fallen back asleep.

The Ranger following the two Nightsisters did not like what she heard them saying about Krillgan. They were at the top of Lovers' Leap. The two Nightsisters were saying that it looked like Krillian had attacked some lady. They could see signs of struggle, and claimed that they found fresh splatters of blood. When they looked down over the edge they thought they saw something snagged partway down the escarpment. When they climbed down they found a dress. It was torn and had blood on it. When they got down to the foot of the falls they found torn pieces of a woman's undergarments. They looked closely at the dress. One of the Nightsisters commented on how pretty it once was. She was going to take it back with her to see if the slaves can wash the blood out, and mend the dress. Going downstream from the falls they found a shirt. The Ranger recognised it as having belonged to Krillgan, the Nightsisters called him healer. It was the shirt he wore to their party. It was torn and had what looked like a blood on it. It was much darker than what was found on the dress. The Nightsisters were speculating whether the healer was injured from the fall or from the struggle with the lady. They continued downstream and found Krillgan's pants snagged on some rocks just before the waterfall to the ocean. When they looked over the edge they saw a giant fish swimming around where the waterfall hit the ocean. The Nightsisters were pretty sure that they knew where the healer and the lady ended up. After the Nightsisters left, the Ranger broke down and started crying. Krillgan is dead.

When Ludia and Diennu reached Mother's cottage with their bundle. Krillgan noticed the ingredients on Mother's mixing table. He felt really bad, to him it was obvious that he had rapped someone last night. The dreams were too real to be imagined, and they had mixed a potion for someone. Ludia and Diennu unceremoniously unrolled the carpet with Krillgan in it on Mother's bed, and left the carpet on top of him. They told him that mother and father had prepared some new clothes for him. They were draped on a chair. When he was feeling stronger, he should get dressed. He just lay there for quite a while. He had never felt so weak in his life. He kept wondering how many people he hurt last night. He remembered breaking that Nightsister's neck, when he only wanted to subdue her. Then there were those horrible images of him doing horrible things to some woman's body. He was sure that it was not the Nigtsister's body he had done those things to. He was pretty sure he was outside somewhere when it happened. Tears came to his eyes as he lay there. He had no strength or desire to get up. It was a while later, when the Ranger came to the cottage looking for Mother. It was evident that she had been crying. When she saw that Ludia was in the cottage, she did not want to say anything. But Mother made her give her report. She told her about spotting the two Nightsisters as they climbed onto the lowlands, they were trailing something, so she followed them. She heard them talking about a Rancor and a healer. Somehow they were together at first, then they seemed to have parted company. Mother stopped her at that point. She spoke to one of the Sisters in the room, "Can you go talk to the herd Mother, and tell her not to eat the swamp Rancor. We have enough evidence that he really did help Krillgan. He should be rewarded not eaten." She then instructed the Ranger to continue. She told them about following them up the escarpment to the midlands. When they got to Lovers' Leap, they started making horrible accusations about the healer, which she had guessed to be Krillgan. They found fresh blood splatter on the ground. Then they noticed some material down the escarpment. They climbed down and found a torn woman's dress with blood on it. The dress looked like it may have been made by Mother Andriel. It sure looked like one of her designs. At the foot of the falls they found torn woman's undergarments. Downstream they found Krillgan's shirt, torn and bloody. She recognised it before they said that it was the shirt the healer had worn to their party. They found his pants amongst some rocks just before where the stream emptied into the ocean. Then they spotted a giant fish swimming at the bottom of the waterfall. "Krillgan's dead." Then she started crying again. Mother reached over and put her hand on the Ranger's shoulder. The Ranger was surprised that no one was reacting to her news. Before she could question them, Krillgan who had been listening, had a spark of hope in him. The scenes she described were what he saw in his dreams. Could they have been all made up? He clearly wasn't dead. He stuck his head out the bedroom door and asked the Ranger whether it was a good thing or a bad thing to be dead. The Ranger screamed, "You're alive!" Then held her hands over her mouth. "No! You just said I was dead. I certainly feel like it." "Come and give me a hug." Krillgan's face darkened, so the Ranger knew he was embarrassed. "Not just yet. I need to dress first." So she came over and kissed him on the cheek. "I'm just glad that you are whatever you are." Krillgan ducked his head back into the bedroom and closed the door. The Ranger turned around and saw that everyone had smiles on their faces. "You knew he was alive. Why didn't you stop me from making my report?" Mother hugged her. "We needed to be sure the Nightsisters believed what they saw. If you believed it, than we a sure they did." Mother than went on to describe to her the preparations they made, and who donated blood. The elders described how they planted the evidence, without setting foot on the lowlands. Krillgan was listening to all this through the door. He started crying softly, it really was all just a bad dream. He started feeling better. He wiped his face, and started dressing. There were a number of pairs of underwear. His mother had sewn him a couple of nice shirts. Father outdone himself. There was a nice pair of soft leather pants, a nice leather vest, and a soft leather jacket. He was sure this was all Rancor leather. It was really hard to get Rancor leather this soft. That would explain why the leather garments were all slightly different in colour. Beside the chair was a brand new pair of leather boots, with little slots built in them for daggers. Beside them was his father's backpack. Which he and mother made when they first found out that they were coming to Dathomir. When he picked up the top piece of underwear, he found his two stone knives underneath. He wondered where they had gotten to. While he was dressing he heard a Sister reporting that the Fenelar Phoenix had been spotted over the ocean. It should be landing soon. He heard Ludia asking Diennu if she could go talk to Rasha. "It might be easier if she heard the news from her. She did not think that Krillgan was in any condition to tell her himself." Diennu agreed, it would be easier if she told Rasha about the engagement. Mother left Kreen with Ludia to bring Krillgan to the Phoenix. They were under strict orders. If they see a scavenger creature, kill it! They don't want to take any chances, of the Nightsisters finding out that Krillgan is still alive.

Diennu found Rasha at her mother's grave. When Rasha saw Diennu, she stuck her hands out to her, so that she would hold them. "I'm so glad that you and Ludia had me plant flowers on Mother's grave. I know I told you this before, and I will tell you this again. But it was the only thing I ever had a chance to do for her. The only way that I could thank her for loving me, and giving me the chance to let her know, I still love her." Diennu assured her that it was okay to keep telling her. This way she knew for sure that it really was her good friend Rasha who got off the ship, and not some imposter. The two young ladies hugged. Diennu told Rasha, that Ludia was with Krillgan, helping him to get ready to leave with them. This was news to Rasha, she only knew that they had received an urgent call from Kindell's World, asking them to come quickly. Diennu told her that she would tell her all about it. But first she needs to tell her something important about Ludia and Krillgan. Ludia wanted her to hear it from a friend. Rasha told her that she can tell her. "Krillgan asked Ludia to marry him." "Wait, I thought you just said Krillgan was coming with us?" "He is, but he is also engaged to Ludia." "So are you warning me away from him?" "Don't be silly. We are telling you because we love you. Even Krillgan. It's okay to still be his friend. I know I still love him with all my heart. Ludia is still my best friend, and I really, really love her. We just wanted you to know that he is no longer available." "I did not think he would even consider me. He did, and so did father, the only question they had concerning you, was whether your father would let you marry him." "It sounds like he was very serious about all this?" "He was. He spent more than a day off by himself. Not eating anything, until he was sure in his heart who he should marry. He approached me first, to tell me that he was going to ask Ludia to marry him." "Did it hurt when he told you?" "Very much. But it helped knowing that he still loved me, and did not want to hurt me, even though he had too. My mother also helped me with it, and I knew I would not stop loving him. So we would like you to look after him, until he can come back for Ludia. Maybe you will get a chance to look after both of them than." Rasha thank Diennu for telling her. Now she had mixed emotions. She was proud of the fact that Krillgan had seriously considered her as a possible life partner. But sad because he had chosen someone else over her. At least that someone else was Ludia. Someone she both loved and admired. Diennu than told her about the Nightsisters trying to get their hands on Krillgan, and how their clan managed to fake his death. Which is why he must leave. She also warned her that these past few days have been very hard on Krillgan, so he might not be his usual self. Not to mention that he was leaving behind the woman he had recently asked to marry him. Rasha assured her that she would do her best to watch over him.

Ambling-Elu informed Captain Chrashan of the reason they contacted him. She had brought a number of kegs of New Ale, regular Ale, and fruit wine as compensation, for him and his crew helping them. The Captain assured her that they were more than adequately compensated for breaking their regular schedule. He apologised that he had not had a chance to make his regular tea purchase on their behalf, and hoped that they would not run out before he returns. Mother was thinking the same thing but did not tell him. She was planning on re-establishing trade with the town to see if they could get some tea through them. It did not take long for the Sisters to load the kegs in one of his cargo bays. Captain Chrashan always wondered what it would take, for one of them to come along, and handle all of their cargo handling.

Krillgan and Ludia showed up holding hands, with Kreen watching over them, and always checking around them. Erin and Aliyanna were the first ones to step forward, and say goodbye to their cousin, at Mother Andriel's prompting. Krillgan shook Erin's hand, but gave Aliyanna a hug whispering in her ear that she was growing up to be a nice looking lady, just like her mother. Aliyanna turned red and kissed him on the cheek, thanking him for the compliment. (She always found it strange that kissing him on the cheek, felt the same as when she kissed her mother on the cheek.) All the Sisters that were there, lined up to hug him, and say goodbye. Mother knew that all the Sisters that were not there were going to be upset that they missed this opportunity. She was sure that they would understand, she just needed to figure out a way to make it up to them. Amblin-Elu was the last Sister to say goodbye. She gave Krillgan a brace of Dathomirite daggers to take with him. She said that he could consider them as an engagement present, and asked him to hurry back for Ludia. He promised he would, and gave her a big hug. Neither one bothered to wipe the tears from their eyes. Mother Andriel was next. She could not help running her fingers through his hair a few times, asking him if he gets a chance to look up some of their old friends. He knows how to contact them. She too had tears in her eyes when she hugged him and kissed him goodbye. Father Chitrah made him recite all the codes for all of their accounts. Because they had not been touched for so long, he would be able to access them as a survivor. He also warned him to conduct all his transactions in credits, because Hutt money is only good in Hutt space. Credits are good everywhere. He then held him close, and gave him a couple of kisses on his cheek. Diennu was the next to say goodbye with a hug and a kiss. Finally it was Ludia's turn. She had been crying with everyone else, and was still crying. She was the only one to kiss him on his lips, and they had a long embrace. She told Krillgan to come back soon. Rasha had tears in her eyes from all the emotional goodbyes. She went up to Ludia and gave her a good hug. She told her not to worry, she would look after him. She then took Krillgan by the hand to lead him up the ramp onto the ship, because he kept looking at all the people he loved, that he was leaving behind, and did not watch where he was going.


End file.
